Scanning for a Birthday

On Wednesday, on the heels of the release of Monday’s PACS – Acute Care 2008 report by Orem, Utah-based KLAS, I found myself amidst the cacophony of Manhattan’s morning traffic in a serene hospital room. Staring at the computer monitor in the imaging department, I felt lucky. I was, after all, a (very) soon-to-be mother about to find out the size and position of my son (both I was told were great, I am happy to report). According to KLAS, providers say getting a PACS solution streamlines efficiency, improves quality of patient care and increases cost savings. What it also does, I can tell you, is solve mysteries. For me, apart from making sure the baby had properly formed bones and organs during a previous visit, PACS helped me understand why the right side of my rib cage continues to give me such discomfort. Because, as I saw on the screen, there is a foot comfortably wedged underneath.