Peoria Standard

New software improves communication for Radiology patients using MyCarle

Starting this month, Carle Health patients will see radiology reports interpreted for them in plain language through the MyCarle account or the MyCarle app.

Called ScanSlated, the artificial intelligence software keeps the original language submitted by Carle clinical experts in radiology but it also highlights key terms in the report and provides easy-to-understand definitions as well as an anatomical illustration. The software developed by a radiologist at Duke Health in North Carolina uses the radiologist’s report and runs it through algorithms. Patients can easily see definitions of highlighted key terms with definitions of those terms in each report.

“I am most proud of this. It levels the playing field for the patients,” Kelly Oppe, director of Radiology at Carle Foundation Hospital, said. “Hopefully the patient can see this and be an active participant in their medical care.”

Todd Rhodes, Carle IT System Administrator in Radiology at Carle Foundation Hospital, worked to make the software functional for Carle’s use and he pointed out the software tool also translates radiology terms into easy-to-understand Spanish.

“We are slowly continuing to grow out what it means to empower patient’s within their own care, and I believe that this is a huge step in that direction. Imaging is such a huge part of patient’s care, and the reports that our radiologists create are so in depth that it can be hard to understand if you don’t have a background that will help support you when reading them,” Rhodes said.

Geri Claypool, Lead IT System Administrator/Radiology, said the software is secure through a single virtual server. Patient reports will still only be accessible through the patient login.

Patients will access the software through the MyChart application. Carle team members will view the ScanSlated Report for their patients through the internal patient information system as well through the patient’s Chart Review by selecting a hyperlink above the radiologist’s report.

Providing not only patient access to their information, but also a deeper understanding of their information goes a step further than required of hospitals by federal law, Oppe said.

Patients can provide feedback to what they are seeing in real time. “We hope this helps prevent anxiety until a patient’s next appointment or until the patient connects with the provider,” Oppe said.

Original source can be found here