Challenge: Radiologists using Konica Minolta Healthcare equipment were hampered by a manual process for collecting device usage data.

Solution: Konica Minolta uses Domo Everywhere to power AeroRemote Insights, a cloud solution that automatically collects and visualizes device data.

Impact: Healthcare organizations use AeroRemote Insights to improve employee training, reduce damage to equipment, and provide a better patient experience.

Konica Minolta Healthcare delivers medical imaging insights with Domo Everywhere.

Konica Minolta is an industry leader in medical imaging solutions, including x-ray, ultrasound, and imaging management systems. With a focus on helping the invisible to be seen, Konica Minolta helps healthcare organizations nurture patients across the full continuum of care.

To help radiologists work smarter, Konica Minolta relies on Domo Everywhere to power its AeroRemote Insights analytics solution.

 

 

“We wanted a seamless solution that was scalable, easy to use, and that would deliver value to our customers. We found our partner in Domo,” said Rob Kenley, vice president of commercial services for Konica Minolta.

 

“Domo Everywhere helps our customers make valuable decisions that lead to better patient care.” 

Rob Kenley | vice president of commercial services for Konica Minolta

 

Powering smarter equipment insights.

Konica Minolta’s imaging equipment can capture valuable usage data that healthcare organizations can use to make smarter decisions about equipment usage, training, and maintenance. Before Domo Everywhere, this data had to be manually collected from individual machines using a USB drive, then brought back to a PC for downloading and analysis.

To replace this labor-intensive, time-consuming process, Konica Minolta uses Domo Everywhere to help create AeroRemote Insights, a cloud subscription service that gives users access to all the data created by Konica Minolta equipment. Data is collected, processed, visualized, and then shared via Domo Everywhere. As a white-label solution, Domo Everywhere seamlessly integrates into AeroRemote Insights to deliver a cohesive Konica Minolta-branded experience.

“AeroRemote Insights powered by Domo Everywhere is a key differentiator when our customers are making decisions about purchasing capital equipment, as well as selecting services to protect those assets,” Kenley said. “Customers can use it to identify trends and be more predictive and proactive about making decisions based on the data coming off their Konica Minolta equipment, helping them achieve cost savings.”

 

 

One organization that relies on AeroRemote Insights is Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons (DMOS), which delivers multi-faceted orthopedic care through offices across central Iowa. DMOS uses AeroRemote Insights daily to collect and aggregate data such as exam volume, rejected image reasons, and exposure levels for exams to evaluate staff productivity, training requirements, and equipment maintenance needs.

“Before AeroRemote Insights, we had to manually log all our x-rays, which meant trusting techs to accurately self-report how many exposures they were doing. We then had to manually go through and count each one. It was a very lengthy process,” said Lucia Rose-Alphs, clinical operations and west clinical manager at DMOS. “With AeroRemote Insights, I can find exactly what I want, regardless of the query, the machine, or time frame. My day-to-day work is a lot smoother now.”

 

 

“We literally have all our information right at our fingertips. There’s no manual process, everything is very easy to view, and it’s all HIPAA compliant,” said Ron Peterson, radiology administrator at DMOS.

Improving the patient experience.

One critical way DMOS uses AeroRemote Insights is to track its repeat rates, which shows how often an x-ray has to be repeated. A patient may need a repeat x-ray for many reasons, such as if they move during the x-ray, if there is an artifact covering what the orthopedic surgeon wants to see, or if there is equipment damage.

“We want a repeat rate that’s as low as possible in order to reduce the amount of radiation a patient is exposed to,” said Rose-Alphs. “We can now easily analyze our repeat rate by tech to identify what is causing high repeat rates, identify any techs who need additional training, and then monitor their repeat rate to ensure it comes back in compliance.”

“It improves the patient experience by helping our techs learn how to get different views correctly the first time,” said Amber Bohnstengel, clinic manager and advanced imaging manager at DMOS. “The more competent our techs are, the less radiation it is for the patient, and the faster a quality image can get to a doctor.”

Repeat rates are now a part of each tech’s annual review, enabling DMOS to better quantify performance. “Now we have hard data to back up performance, instead of just a gut feeling that a tech is doing a good job. The techs really enjoy being able to see how well they are doing and how they’ve improved,” Bohnstengel said.

 

 

Reducing equipment damage.

Another critical way DMOS uses AeroRemote Insights is to track its x-ray panel drop rates. With panels costing upwards of $60,000 each, DMOS must ensure its techs do everything they can to prevent damage.

“If we see a high drop rate, we need to know if it has something to do with how we are placing panels, or if there is a specific tech that isn’t being as careful,” said Rose-Alphs. “Being able to detect a dropped panel helps us ensure our equipment is top-notch and safe for our patients.”

“When we see we have a dropped panel, we can proactively pull it from our system and give it a diagnostic check to make sure everything is okay with it before we use it the next time,” said Peterson. “We’ve been able to dramatically decrease our drop panel rate because we were able to use AeroRemote Insights to view a graph that showed the specific body parts or exam types most likely to cause accidents. We educated our techs on how to better use the equipment so that it’s now not as common.”

Training the next generation.

DMOS partners with a local university to give students the technical training they need to be job-ready at graduation. Thanks to AeroRemote Insights powered by Domo Everywhere, DMOS can train the next generation of techs to work safely and effectively.

 

“We can track the repeat rates of each student and show them how many exposures they took in the month they were here…This helps them know where they need to improve, such as watching patient motion, clipping anatomy, or instructing patients to hold their breath.” 

Lucia Rose-Alphs | Clinical operations and west clinical manager, DMOS