Procedure
Reading a study
Walks through opening an imaging study in the viewer, moving through its images and reading them alongside the record.
You read a scan in the image study viewer, opened from the patient's record. This page walks you through opening an imaging study, moving through its images, and reading them alongside the record.
Reachable from anywhere
The viewer opens from any tool. You reach a study from the patient's record, from the imaging order, or from your due work. Read how the dock presents your actions.
How a study arrives
An imaging study is the set of images captured for one patient against one imaging order. A clinician places the imaging order in Forge. The study is performed, and the imaging source sends it to the Pensieve imaging store, where it is tied to its order in the patient's record in Atlas. The viewer reads it there, and the images are held for as long as the record they belong to.
The viewer reads studies in the DICOM standard, the common format for medical imaging.
Before you begin
Confirm these three things hold before you open a study.
Open a study
Work through the study from the patient outward. Each step lands you closer to the image, and the viewer stays tied to the patient and the order the whole way.
- 1
Find the patient
Open the patient in the record. Search by name or hospital number. If two patients share a name, check the date of birth before you open one.
- 2
Open the imaging order
Find the imaging order in the patient's active orders. The study sits against that order. Once the study has arrived, the order carries it.
- 3
Open the study
Select the study to open it in the viewer. It opens tied to this patient and this order, so the images you read match the record in front of you.
- 4
Move through the images
A study holds one or more series. Step through the images in a series one at a time. Switch series from the series list when a study carries more than one.
- 5
Adjust what you see
Use Zoom and Pan to reach detail. Adjust brightness and contrast so the tissue you are reading stands out.
- 6
Measure
Use Measure to mark a distance or an angle on the image. The measurement stays with the image for the next reader.
- 7
Read against the record
Keep the record open beside the study. Read the images against the diagnoses, the clinical notes, and any prior study.
The reading controls
The viewer gives you a small set of reading controls, reached from the toolbar above the image.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Zoom | Draws the image larger or smaller so fine detail reads clearly. |
| Pan | Slides the image within the frame to reach an edge. |
| Move through images | Steps through the images in a series, one at a time. |
| Brightness and contrast | Adjusts the greyscale so bone or soft tissue reads clearly. |
| Measure | Marks a distance or an angle, and keeps it with the image. |
Reading with the record
The study reads best beside the rest of the record. Open the diagnoses and clinical notes in one pane and the images in the other, so each supports the other as you read.
Each read is attributed
Every time you open a study, the platform records that you read it, against your own sign-in. On a shared workstation, sign in as yourself, so each read stays attributed to the person who made it.
The images are part of the durable record. Read what else the record holds alongside a study.
Common questions
Where does an imaging study come from?
A clinician places an imaging order in Forge. The study is performed, and the imaging source sends it to the Pensieve imaging store, where it is tied to its order in the patient's record. The viewer reads it there.
Can I open the viewer from another tool?
Yes. The viewer is reachable from any tool, so you open a study from the record, from the order, or from your due work.
Is a study tied to one patient?
Yes. Each study opens tied to the patient and the order it belongs to, so the images match the record in front of you.
Read how a laboratory or imaging order is raised and matched with its result.