1. Having PACS with no administrator is like having a fileroom with no file clerk, no environmental services, no maintenance, no security, and no other staff who can tell you little more than where it is. 2. There are many large scale surveys that indicate the reporting role is split pretty evenly. It seems to be tied pretty tightly to how your 3rd question is answered by any given facility. 3. Having both backgrounds is ideal, particularly if you have only one person. I had years of IT experience, though not much of it applicable to PACS. DICOM, HL7, IHE, etc, are all specifically healthcare IT. You are unlikely to find a general computer science curriculum that covers these. It is also unlikely to find these in a clinical program, even radiology. I also have several years experience as an RT and never had any exposure to that, in spite of doing my clinical at a PACS hospital. That being said, I went to school several years ago and now, in my PACS Admin role, I work with students that are at least being given the opportunity the get a glimpse of this career path. I feel I would have been much better prepared, had there been some formal, mandatory rotation with the PACS staff, much like CT, MR, and the rest of the modalities I circulated through. 4. Pure and simple administration of PACS alone requires at least one full-time position. If they do more, like RIS analysis, you have to have more help somewhere. 5. I find it constantly challenging (for me, a good thing) to discover how many things are involved with the IT needs of the Medical Imaging part of patient care. If there were one thing I could offer above anything else to consider, it is that in my life before becoming a healthcare worker, I was many times a patient, even during my IT life. Perhaps through my own shortcomings, or maybe just like many people out there, I never considered why or how, my treatment was affected by IT. As a HCW, I was aware of the benefits available from IT/PACS but still never really pulled it all together. Now, as a PACS Admin/RIS Analyst, I find myself frequently saying to people with only IT training, "We need it this way for patient care. This is a digital replacement for a formerly analog process." and to people with only clinical training, "Don't romanticize how 'simple' it was with films, folders, chemicals, stickers, view boxes, etc".
Michael V. Spencer RT(R) R.I.S. Administrator Franklin Community Health Network Franklin Memorial Hospital 111 Franklin Health Commons Farmington, ME 04938 207-779-2637 [EMAIL PROTECTED] -----Original Message----- From: Czarnecki, Frances [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2007 9:21 AM To: '[email protected]' Subject: [MEDITECH-L] Looking for info on PACS Administrator position To Facilities with PACS : We are looking for feedback from other Meditech hospitals who have PACS. 1. Do you have a PACS administrator? 2. Does the position report to Medical Imaging or IT? 3. Do you feel it is more important to have a clinical background with some IT knowledge or a strong IT background with some clinical knowledge? 4. Is the position full time or part time? 5. Any other information, do-s or don'ts you would like to share would be appreciated. Thanking all who reply in advance. Frances Czarnecki Information Technology Applications Manager North Adams Regional Hospital 71 Hospital Avenue North Adams, Ma. 01247 413/664-5151 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Confidentiality Notice: If you have received this e-mail in error, please immediately notify the sender by e-mail at the address shown. This e-mail transmission may contain confidential information. The information is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. Any disclosure, distribution, copying or use of the information by others is strictly prohibited. Please delete it from your files if you are not the intended recipient. Thank you for your compliance. =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= To subscribe or unsubscribe to the meditech-l, visit MTUsers.NET. To check the status of the meditech-l, visit MTUsers.NET. For help, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit the MTUsers WikiPedia at MTUsers.NET/mwiki ______________________________________ meditech-l mailing list [email protected] http://mtusers.com/mailman/listinfo/meditech-l =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= To subscribe or unsubscribe to the meditech-l, visit MTUsers.NET. To check the status of the meditech-l, visit MTUsers.NET. For help, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit the MTUsers WikiPedia at MTUsers.NET/mwiki ______________________________________ meditech-l mailing list [email protected] http://mtusers.com/mailman/listinfo/meditech-l
