Making filmless radiology work

ESPITE 2 DECADES of optimistic and confident predictions that filmless radiology was imminent, the centennial commemoration of Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of the x-ray will come and go this year with only a small number of radiology departments interpreting more than a small fraction of imaging studies using a computer workstation. The reasons for this undoubtedly representa combination of economic constraints, concerns about image quality and time required for image interpretation, and the inertia that must be overcome with any paradigm shift as great as is required to abandon film for the largely uncharted waters of digital imaging. The combination of construction Ÿ associated with the Veterans Administration's (VA's) new high-tech showcase, exhaustive investigation into quality and productivity issues associated with digital imaging, a great deal of energy and enthusiasm, and perhaps a bit of naivet› resulted in the decision to pursue filmless operation at the Baltimore VA Medical