By Michael J. Cannavo
CHICAGO - I’ve been coming to the RSNA conference since 1984, and have seen an incredible array of products and services in the PACS marketplace. I’ve also seen more than my fair share of marketing -- some excellent, some abysmal -- and even a few initiatives that stretched the limits of good taste.
I’d thought I’d seen it all until this year’s meeting, when we were dealt the ultimate in questionable marketing by an international PACS firm that shall remain anonymous. The marketing geniuses at this company decided that the best way to get its message out was by handing out -- believe it or not -- condoms.
The correlation between PACS and condoms escapes me, although many jokes have been made about radiologists being cheap or how pragmatic they are given the raging hormones that prevail this week among "separated" spouses ("My wife is in Toledo, I’m in Chicago -- we’re separated").
In an age where sexual harassment suits are filed on a whim, the company seemed to not only find nothing wrong with its giveaway, but prided itself on its resourcefulness.
On the serious side, the south hall of McCormick Place this week seems as though it’s home to every application service provider (ASP) this side of the Mississippi. People who don’t even know what an ASP is are offering ASPs as the answer to lack of capital, with per-click, per-study, flat-rate-no-money, no-problem solutions. X-ray developer Wuestec even went so far as to promote "free digital x-ray machines" (based on a $3-per-shot contract).
There are a few interesting technological advancements on display. GE is rolling out its answer to streaming technology with its TruRez compression algorithm, while a number of smaller players are showcasing different approaches to PACS.
Newcomer ITL is demonstrating an interactive touch-screen-based PACS workstation that highlights the integration of PACS with clinical systems. Several vendors are showing CD-ROM patient medical records with integrated viewers. DVD-based archives are also common, although those offering DVD differ on whose version of DVD is standard.
Dedicated ultrasound miniPACS seems to have made a comeback this year, as has teleradiology, with several vendors offering both systems. Digital radiography products are all over the floor, with at least 14 new vendors added to the ever-growing list of companies entering the DR marketplace.
Tomorrow -- independent PACS companies reach for market share, while the Big Six attempt to maintain control in a market filling with wannabes.
By Michael J. Cannavo
AuntMinnie.com contributing writer
November 28, 2000
Mr. Cannavo is president of Image Management Consultants, a PACS consulting firm.
Copyright © 2000 AuntMinnie.com
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