# Implementation and Evaluation of a Regional Image Share Network

> **NIH NIH R01** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $653,494

## Abstract

Project Abstract
Radiology imaging is most effective when interpreted in the context of the patient’s clinical condition and any
prior studies. However, the fragmented U.S. healthcare system and lack of shared electronic health records
(EHRs) limit access to prior results, impairing both physicians’ ability to appropriately order imaging studies as
well as radiologists’ ability to best interpret results. Patients are consequently frequently exposed to duplicate
imaging and suboptimal image interpretation. These factors in turn increase costs and may cause patient
harm. Health information exchanges (HIEs) are intended to overcome these barriers and improve appropriate
utilization. Yet, HIEs have not been effectively implemented on a wide-scale basis in the U.S. In addition, a
lack of integration of such systems into facilities’ existing IT infrastructures and associated inconvenience for
providers leads to low clinical use and low patient impact for existing HIEs. Moreover, existing HIEs generally
do not provide the ability to view radiology images from other centers. To address these challenges, we
propose a novel collaboration among an academic medical center (NYU Langone Medical Center [NYULMC]),
a large regional health information exchange (Healthix), a major electronic health record vendor (Epic), an
image sharing company (eHealth Technologies), and other academic medical centers in the New York City
region to make both images and reports available in real time within the native EHR for ED clinicians and
within the native PACS for radiologists. Once this image share system is implemented, we will compare four
contemporaneous patient groups of ED patients: (1) those with relevant outside imaging for whom reports are
available but segregated in a separate section of the EHR; (2) those with relevant outside imaging reports
available and integrated into the radiology section of the EHR; (3) those with both outside reports and images
available and integrated; and (4) those with relevant prior imaging performed at NYULMC. This unique
arrangement will provide sufficient data to allow us to determine the impact of fully-integrated image sharing on
key clinical outcomes of repeat image ordering and recommendations for follow-up testing, as well as to
determine the incremental effects of partial sharing (reports only) and workflow integration. The findings will not
only establish the impact of effective image sharing on patient outcomes, but also help direct the ongoing and
future development of image share networks across the U.S.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9916749
- **Project number:** 5R01EB024539-03
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Leora Horwitz
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $653,494
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-08-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9916749

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9916749, Implementation and Evaluation of a Regional Image Share Network (5R01EB024539-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9916749. Licensed CC0.

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