h institutes, developed DOXX, a medical data communications system.
DOXX is a client-/server-based software suite that includes modules for oncology, radiology, and general medicine. The Windows- and Unix-based software is co
mmercially available (prices start at about DM 500, including an ISDN board) and provides e-mail and Internet access to medical libraries and store-and-forward image transmission. It also supports quarterly settlements between physicians and insurance companies.
In a prototype installation last year, DOXX was tested in an image-exchange network among inpatient and outpatient hospitals, general practitioners, and oncologic research institutes. The project deployed Unix workstations for radiologists and PC-based workplaces for the general practitioners connected via ISDN; it also included cooperative work facilities within shared applications.
KOMET, a system that manages patient records on the Web, was developed at th Universitütsklinikum Rudolf Virchow (UKRV) in Berlin. It's made up of Web-browser technology with an American College of Radiology-National Electrical Manufacturers Association (ACR-NEMA) and DICOM file viewer plug-in and, additionally, an ISDN-based videoconferencing system. KOM
ET provides fast retrieval of complete patient records. All users can not only search information on the KOMET Web server but also update the records with their latest examinations.
Security and protection of patients' medical data were key issues during the design of KOMET. In addition to sophisticated user and privileges management, the system uses a firewall that separates the UKRV LAN from the Internet and an ISDN router that accepts only registered ISDN caller IDs. KOMET, which has been in use since January, reportedly integrates with DOXX.
Rainer Mauth is a BYTE senior news editor based in Frankfurt. You can reach him at
rmauth@bix.com
.
The Multimedia Patient Record
