Shina Ghafoor-Ameen
Hospital of Thun, Switzerland
Title: The impact of innovations in medical imaging on healthcare economics
Biography
Biography: Shina Ghafoor-Ameen
Abstract
The continuously rising healthcare costs present a great challenge for the community and therefore demand new opportunities for innovation. Medical imaging is one of the fastest growing areas of medicine. The field of Radiology is expanded dramatically leading in most of the cases to provide a precise diagnosis in few minutes. Imaging technology has undergone a tremendous progress from Roentgen’s discovery of X-rays to present day Ultrasound (US) Computed Tomography (CT) and Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Medical imaging replaces the need for surgery and shortens time in the hospital. Impacts on quality are because new equipment offers higher imaging quality and reduced radiation exposure, owing to the improvement of technologies using X-rays or to the substitution of non-ionizing technologies (e.g. MR imaging). Some studies provided the evidence that MRI is cost effective examination, however this needs to be considered case by case and as per compelling indication. New technologies being developed for MRI to decrease exam scan times and increase diagnostic impact.
Furthermore an improving cost effective technology like Teleradiology continues to spread and will bring the overall healthcare costs further down. New innovation is a bargain if it can improve the quality of life and prevent the high cost of disability.