Estonia’s Pildipank and Agfa HealthCare are strengthening and extending their relationship, by moving the national shared Picture Archiving Communication System (PACS) to the Enterprise Imaging platform. New functionalities will deliver key benefits, including advanced viewing capabilities, enhanced collaboration between healthcare providers, reduced IT complexity and maintenance, and better-informed decision-making.

 Sihtasutus Eesti Tervishoiu Pildipank (or ‘Pildipank’, for short) enables all healthcare institutions in Estonia to share a single environment for exchanging, archiving and accessing medical images. Together, these healthcare facilities produce around 1.6 million studies each year – a number that grows about 10% annually.

Estonia’s national ‘Pildipank’ was set up in 2006 by Tartu University Hospital (TUC) and North Estonia Medical Centre (NEMC). As the foundation of this shared solution, the two hospitals chose Agfa HealthCare’s PACS. A leader in connectivity, Agfa HealthCare was able to integrate third-party systems such as local radiology information systems (RIS), the vendor-neutral archive (VNA), and various advanced visualization (AV) solutions from different major vendors, etc.

Now, Pildipank has chosen to transition to Enterprise Imaging and to extend the agreement with Agfa HealthCare for another seven years.

Innovative solutions that meet real needs

Under the new agreement, Agfa HealthCare will provide Pildipank with:

• Enterprise Imaging for Radiology: offering advanced image processing and reporting, clinical applications, teleworking and collaboration tools, advanced system monitoring and administration, and more – all in a single, sophisticated imaging platform.
• XERO Universal Viewer and Xtend: enabling care providers from any of Estonia’s healthcare institutions to access their patients’ holistic imaging data, such as ECG, spirography, dermatology, electronic consultation, using advanced viewing capabilities and tools, while reducing IT complexity and maintenance.
• Business Intelligence: providing insight in clinical, quality, financial and administrative data, which forms the basis for more informed decision-making.
• TQM/DOSE Monitoring: contributing to the state-national patient dose registry and enhanced quality of care.

Reliable, committed service and support

“From the beginning, Agfa HealthCare was able to support a system architecture and design that met our KPIs and leveraged our other investments,” says Andrus Paats, the board member of Pildipank. “During the evaluation sessions, they showed us they can meet our functional requirements without issues. In particular, the XERO Xtend functionality, with advanced viewing capabilities, has enabled Pildipank to widen user groups beyond radiology, allowing to start cardiology, pulmonology and dermatology consultations based on ECG’s, spirograms and dermatology photographic images. In addition, Agfa’s new modular EI platform, with central architecture, will be the corner stone for the development of a national patient dose registry. But equally as important as the technology, is Agfa HealthCare’s strong commitment to service and partnership. We are confident we can rely on both the solution and Agfa HealthCare as a vendor, and look forward to continuing our relationship.”

“We were proud to play a role in helping to establish Estonia’s national medical imaging management solution, and are delighted that Pildipank has chosen not only to extend our relationship, but also to strengthen it,” says Willy Rose, the Head of Marketing Europe of Agfa HealthCare. “This choice proves that our customers perceive the value we deliver in making their goals and ambitions a reality. We look forward to helping Pildipank continue to meet the increasing needs of their users in radiology and beyond, both with our solutions and our support.”

Roberto Anello, Agfa HealthCare’s Managing Director for Northern Europe, comments on the recent award.
“The extension of Pildipank’s investment in Agfa HealthCare demonstrates our pledge to support our clients’ digital strategy and journey – to deliver best-in-suite Enterprise Imaging for the region. As Pildipank’s requirements continue to evolve, in line with the national imaging demands, Agfa HealthCare commits to remaining a dedicated and durable partner of the Estonian healthcare system, to provide innovative solutions and help support the Estonian healthcare system’s drive to improve the delivery of patient care.”

In the picture:
Roberto Anello – Managing Director for Northern Europe, Agfa HealthCare
Andrus Paats – The board member, Pildipank
Dr Äli Roose – The head of the diagnostic clinic, Põhja-Eesti
Willy Rose – Head of Marketing Europe, Agfa HealthCare