New Ultrasound Tech Software Auto-Populates Measurements and Decreases Report Errors

Using a transfer-software tool to auto-populate ultrasound measurement increases accuracy and reduces time and money spent on creating reports, according to a new study published in Current Problems in Diagnostic Radiology. 

Ultrasound technologists and radiologists tediously write, check, and edit measurements that are recorded by hand or dictated from worksheets. This process is susceptible to errors that can influence results.

Researchers from the Montefiore Medical Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine wanted to decrease the time spent on this process, so they introduced a software that would auto-fill the measurements. They implemented 128 fields for 39 templates with a “1:1:1 correspondence for each field,” and then trained the ultrasound technologists to use the fields for measurement transmission.

“Auto-filling of ultrasound measurements streamlines ultrasound reporting and allows the radiologist to focus on the imaging findings rather than the required documentation of numerical data,” wrote the researchers.

The program received a positive response. Overall, the utilization rates among ultrasound technologists was 86 to 96 percent; 95 to 96 for radiology residents; and 92 to 93 percent for radiologists. The researchers predict that the software will save the facility over $800,000 in the next five years.