Consolidation, optimization and innovation

AI-powered Enterprise Imaging enhances diagnostic confidence at ASL Roma 2

AGFA HealthCare’s Enterprise Imaging Platform with AI is supporting ASL Roma 2 to optimize medical imaging operations, enhance diagnostic confidence, and deliver high-quality patient care across 3 hospitals, 21 outpatient clinics and 6 city districts.

ASL Roma 2, headquartered at the Sandro Pertini Hospital in Rome, is a major public health authority in the city of Rome, Italy, covering a catchment population of over 1.2 million citizens. Formed by the unification of two previous health authorities (ASL Rome B and ASL Rome C), it now comprises three hospitals and 21 outpatient clinics, across six districts. ASL Roma 2 carries out approximately 500,000 radiological examinations annually, spread across diverse medical imaging units, including emergency, interventional radiology, mammography, and oncology – each with its own image access and management needs.

To address the challenges of those varied needs, the healthcare provider turned to AGFA HealthCare’s Enterprise Imaging platform. The goal was to facilitate the unified sharing of images and reports across multiple sites, and ensure seamless integration of both DICOM and non-DICOM data. By leveraging Enterprise Imaging and the Elefante^® RIS, along with their consolidation and AI capabilities, ASL Roma 2 has not only optimized its diverse medical imaging activities, but also significantly enhanced diagnostic confidence and efficiency, to provide high-quality patient care across its extensive network.

AGFA HealthCare’s regional dealer, Biesse Medica, led by its Founder and CEO, Mr. Alberto Brugnoni, has been instrumental in the project’s success. Biesse Medica is the partner in the consortium, and its strong presence in the region provided necessary resources for implementation, go-live, and ongoing support.

Unified imaging, streamlined data management

For Dr. Alberto Di Filippo, Diagnostic Radiologist at ASL Roma 2, the implementation of AGFA HealthCare’s Enterprise Imaging platform has brought much-needed consolidation and innovation to this public health authority, across its many different medical imaging units. “We serve a vast and diverse population, and our medical imaging needs are equally varied. Managing these needs within a unified system was a significant challenge. Enterprise Imaging not only enables organizational optimization, but it also offers significant innovations such as augmented intelligence,” he describes.

The AGFA HealthCare solution at ASL Roma 2 includes the Enterprise Imaging VNA, Enterprise Imaging for Radiology with RUBEE® AI Packages, the Elefante® RIS, the XERO® Universal Viewer, and a patient portal. “Each hospital and district has its own Enterprise Imaging PACS, including a viewer and post-processing software. The solution enables imaging reconstructions for various medical imaging exams and incorporates artificial intelligence applications. Data flows in and out continuously, and remote reporting is possible via secure, web-based consultations. In addition, we have now a patient portal, which enables online consultation and sharing of reports,” Dr. Di Filippo continues.

“The core of our platform is the VNA, which provides a central repository for all data across our extensive territory. It stores both DICOM and non-DICOM data, such as multimedia files and reports in various formats. The repository facilitates data consultation by clinicians, and also enables our radiologists to access non-radiological records, such as endoscopy and cardiology reports,” he adds.

Automating and optimizing clinical workflows with AI

One of the key aims of the implementation project was the introduction of AI tools to support diagnosis, especially for screening and for managing emergencies. “Our Enterprise Imaging solution includes multiple RUBEE® AI packages offering applications such as advanced visualization and Computer Aided Diagnosis (CAD) systems for detecting suspicious lesions, microcalcifications, and density areas. The packages also orchestrate workflows and include applications that process DICOM data.”

Dr Di Filippo highlights the key role AI plays in triage at ASL Roma 2. “In breast imaging, it helps prioritize the daily work list, saving time and improving diagnostic confidence. In neuroradiology, we have seen improved detection and classification of strokes, which is vital for rapid and accurate treatment. Similarly, in musculoskeletal imaging, the increased sensitivity and accuracy of fracture detection has reduced diagnostic errors and decreased emergency room stay lengths. Given our large catchment, this improvement greatly streamlines emergency room operations.”