Jim Dockins, VP, Hospital Services

Measuring ROI


Within six months of implementing PACS, Jackson General is seeing both quantitative and qualitative proof of the economic wisdom of their decision.

"It has dramatically improved our throughput time and ability to move patients rapidly through the departments," says Vice President of Hospital Services, Jim Dockins.

" It has dramatically improved our throughput time and ability to move patients..."

PACS was live in all targeted departments by January 2001. During the period from July 2000 to June 200l, the hospital reported:

  • 65% reduction in report turn-around time (6 to 2 hours)
  • 80% reduction in film costs per Unit of Service ($4.49 to $0.87)

The Bang for the Buck

The Bang for the Buck

"The biggest impact is physician productivity," says CIO Jeff Frieling. "They are getting images more quickly and can take care of patients more efficiently. It's not easily quantified but we know it's happening."

Hospital management sees PACS as contributing significantly to a healthier bottom line in many key areas:

Growing the hospital with existing resources

"This technology is allowing us to grow within our same square footage on the inpatient and outpatient side. It has given us a lot more capacity in terms of hours," says Dockins.

Charlotte Brummett, director of the new outpatient imaging center, concurs and sees lessons for addressing the nationwide problem of healthcare staff shortages.

"We've seen huge improvements in productivity and because of that, we've been able to handle a 26% increase in outpatient imaging volume without hiring additional staff," she says. "