Towards the Networked OR
06 June 2006
In today's digital world, Sony helps hospitals to bridge the gap between visible light modalities and DICOM networks – letting them unlock the power of their video assets.
It's no secret that making better use of your network pays dividends in all walks of life – and today's operating room is no exception.
Endoscopic and arthroscopic cameras have transformed the quality and efficiency of diagnosis and intervention, enabling a new generation of minimally invasive techniques. However the usefulness of visible light images extends far beyond the confines of the OR. Complementing ultrasound, MRI, CT and other radiological modalities still and video images captured in the OR play a vital role in creating a complete record of every patient.
Digital networks have created new teaching possibilities by bridging the gap between the OR and the lecture theatre. Images from endoscopic cameras – plus point-of-view shots of the whole theatre – can be viewed by students in a teaching room, far away from the OR in another part of the hospital campus where the risks of infection are eliminated. Running over standard IT networks, video-conferencing systems allow surgeons and their audiences to interact in real-time. Students can view live video on large plasma or LCD screens and communicate with the surgeon, asking questions that he or she can respond to via a microphone in the OR.
'Live' teaching aside, lecturers can call up archive video footage of an intervention and display it on screens to illustrate a salient point. With video content stored on a central server, students can also study in their own time, browsing archived footage of a surgical procedure on their own notebook PC. In an increasingly litigious environment, networked recording of operations also provides a clear trail of documentary evidence to protect surgeons and hospital trusts as well as their patients.
Until recently, videotape has been the default medium for recording surgical procedures for archival and subsequent playback. Tape-based storage, however, presents a number of disadvantages. Capturing hundreds or thousands of hours worth of OR footage requires management of a large tape library. Without efficient labelling and secure storage there's no guarantee that a tape can be tracked down reliably – months or years after it was recorded, if needs be. As well as being costly in human resource terms, tape-based libraries occupy a large amount of shelf space that may be at a premium in many hospitals.
Digitising the storage, archiving and management of video records eliminates these constraints at a stroke. And with the real costs of server-based storage the lowest they have ever been, the economics of migrating to network-centric video recording and management more compelling than ever. Cost and convenience issues aside, digitising video material captured in the OR transforms workflow efficiency across the entire hospital campus. Once content has been stored on a centralised server, it is immediately available wherever and whenever it's needed – even in another country.
The benefits of networking your OR are numerous. But to date few equipment vendors have successfully addressed the challenges of integrating visible light images with modern hospital IT networks and patient record systems. Here Sony is leading the way by working with a number of leading European hospitals to network their visible light assets.
One example of this partnership in action is at St Olavs Hospital in Trondheim, Norway, where Sony has created an imaging network linking ORs, patient preparation rooms and the hospital's teaching auditorium. High definition video cameras give a crisp, clear viewpoint of activity in each operating room, allowing students to watch surgical procedures on PC workstations in a teaching auditorium. Risk of infection is minimised since students do not need to be in the operating room, and theatre staff can work without disruption. Doctors can listen to students' questions and answer via a live audio link. Images and videos from an operation can be stored in a visible light PACS and attached to electronic patient records. These records can also be shared with other hospitals in Norway and overseas.
