The median profit margin of U.S. hospitals has fallen to zero percent and financial strains are apparent across all hospital types, driven largely by a decline in non-operating revenues, according to a Thomson Reuters analysis of hospital finances.

The threat of radiology becoming a commodity has increased in part due to teleradiology, accelerated information exchange and the development of new technology, according to a perspective in the March issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. To prevent this trend, medical imaging practitioners need to develop objective and reproducible quality-oriented metrics that can be used to differentiate service deliverables on the basis of quality.

A compendium of the business intelligence required to launch a CCTA service

Using teleradiology to interpret off-hours inpatient imaging serves as an important process-improvement tool in decreasing the time to create preliminary written reports for CT pulmonary angiographic studies, according to a study in the March issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

The Medical Imaging and Technology Alliance (MITA) has expressed its support for the health policy goals presented in President Barack Obama's federal budget, but cautions that the budget's proposed reliance on radiology benefit managers (RBMs) will deny imaging services.

Hospitals are suffering from the economic downturn and are enacting drastic changes to respond to today's tough economy, according to a recent report from healthcare contracting services firm Novation.

Millard Fillmore Gates Circle Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y., has installed a Toshiba America Medical Systems' Aquilion One dynamic volume CT system at its Kaleida Health Stroke Center.

The 850-bed Royal Liverpool University Hospital in Liverpool, England, has installed two Somatom Definition AS and AS+ CT scanners from Siemens Healthcare, joining a Somatom Sensation 16 already on site.