Secure Medical Network Enables Breast-Screening Program on Wheels

[Courtney Hastings]

GCI ConnectMD (ConnectMD), the premier provider of telehealth connectivity and services throughout the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, has partnered with Swedish Medical Center (Swedish) on The Swedish Cancer Institute's Mobile Mammography Program. The program was created to deliver potentially life-saving technology to communities that would otherwise have little to no access to advanced breast-cancer screening. This is the latest example of ConnectMD’s ongoing effort to help its customers deliver quality healthcare regardless of location, a factor that differentiates it from other health IT solutions.

 

“ConnectMD makes it possible for Swedish to continue extending the quality healthcare continuum, literally pushing the boundaries of its care network,” said Steve Constantine, director of GCI medical and video services. “We have partnered with Swedish on a variety of mobile and remote health projects, helping Swedish improve healthcare access, whether its patients live within city limits or in rural communities.”

 

The Mobile Mammography Program was developed to make breast-cancer screening more convenient, to increase outreach to underserved communities and to reduce the disparities in care due to limited access. As such, Swedish introduced its program in 2004 with the Swedish Breast Care Express, a full-service, self-contained, 64-foot mammography clinic on wheels, which featured the latest in digital full-field mammography technology as well as a complete rooftop satellite system enabling the transmission of images to breast-screening radiologists at Swedish. 

 

In 2008, Swedish officially rolled out its second mobile mammography coach, which was designed smaller for better in-city access. It included digital mammography, along with a wireless broadband communications system for securely transmitting mammography images back to Swedish.

 

ConnectMD’s secure medical network provides the connectivity and exchange of The Swedish Cancer Institute's Mobile Mammography Program’s health-related information from the vehicle to Swedish via mobile satellite.

 

ConnectMD is a private medical network made up of clinics, hospitals, and medical corporations, securely and reliably exchanging medical data and critical health information. ConnectMD is a service of GCI, an Alaska-based telecommunications company that has been successfully providing solutions to customers for over 25 years. The unique combination of telecommunications expertise, a focus on healthcare, and proven experience delivering medical network services, regardless of location, distinguishes GCI ConnectMD from other health IT solutions. Currently 200 facilities are securely exchanging medical data and have access to a suite of health IT tools and services on the GCI ConnectMD medical network. Visit www.connectmd.com for more information.

 

Swedish has grown over the last 100 years to become the largest, most comprehensive non-profit health provider in the Greater Seattle area with 8,500 employees, 3,000 physicians and 1,200 volunteers. It is comprised of four hospital campuses (First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard and Edmonds); emergency departments and ambulatory care centers in Issaquah, Redmond and soon Mill Creek; Swedish Visiting Nurse Services; and Swedish Medical Group – a network of more than 40 primary-care and specialty clinics located throughout the Puget Sound area. Swedish recently opened a new emergency department and medical office building (MOB) on its Ballard campus and will open a new MOB and hospital in the Issaquah Highlands in the summer of 2011. In addition to general medical and surgical care, Swedish is known as a regional referral center, providing specialized treatment in areas such as cardiovascular care, cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics, high-risk obstetrics, pediatric specialties, organ transplantation and clinical research. For more information, visit www.swedish.org, www.twitter.com/swedish or www.facebook.com/swedish#!/swedishmedicalcenter.

 

The Swedish Cancer Institute (SCI) opened in 1932 as the first dedicated cancer-care center west of the Mississippi. It is the largest and most comprehensive cancer treatment program in the Pacific Northwest, caring for more people with more types of cancer than any other provider in the region. The Institute has a presence on all four of Swedish’s hospital campuses – First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard and Edmonds – as well as in East King County and at Highline Medical Center in Burien. A true multidisciplinary institute, SCI offers a wide range of advanced cancer-treatment options in chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery – backed by extensive diagnostic capabilities, patient education and support-group services. For more information, visit www.swedish.org/cancer.