Royal Philips announced its participation in the upcoming Annual Integrative Ultrasound Meeting (AIUM) virtual event, April 11-14, hosted by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine. The company will spotlight its latest advanced tele-ultrasound solutions, extending access and consistency of care and expanding capacity of care teams by enabling remote clinician to clinician collaboration.
As telemedicine continues to grow in adoption, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the evolution of ultrasound has been revolutionized by the expansion of tele-ultrasound, demonstrating its ability to extend global access to quality care across cardiovascular, general imaging and women’s healthcare, regardless of geographic limitations. Advancements in point-of-care (POC) ultrasound are showing tremendous promise in rural and underserved areas of the world, allowing users of POC – emergency medicine physicians, intensivists, hospitalists, critical care physicians, medical fellows, residents, and more – to perform exams and consult with patients and one another, all via tele-ultrasound technology.
Spotlight on Philips Handheld Ultrasound (Lumify) with Collaboration Live (Reacts)
At the virtual AIUM event, Philips will highlight its advanced tele-ultrasound solutions, allowing remote and secure communication between clinical teams and patients in real-time, making physical distance less of an obstacle. Philips products – including its award-winning Handheld Ultrasound (Lumify) with Collaboration Live (Reacts), the world’s first truly integrated tele-ultrasound solution providing remote access to clinical staff in real-time during exams – will be front and center at the event. Remote guidance and collaboration allows tele-ultrasound users to eliminate time wasted in switching physical locations and to limit exposure to infectious patients, while increasing productivity and improving the patient and staff experience.
“In the era of COVID-19, the use of remote ultrasound guidance and training is more important than ever before. Patients are very sick, and cannot be examined with a stethoscope in order not to spread the virus from patient to patient,” said Yanick Beaulieu, MD, Cardiologist-Intensivist and Medical Officer for Precision Diagnosis at Philips. “Tools that can deliver tele-guidance have become invaluable. When I am working remotely with one of my residents who is with a COVID patient performing an ultrasound exam with Philips Handheld Ultrasound (Lumify) and Collaboration Live (Reacts), I can see everything she is doing and guide her as if I were in the same room. Bringing expertise to where it is needed most is the true benefit of tele-ultrasound.”
“When you work in a vast state like New Mexico, there are many rural areas, with limited access to high quality obstetric medical care,” said Michael S. Ruma, MD, MPH, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at Perinatal Associates of New Mexico. “We deal with many common fetal illnesses and abnormalities in our practice. Having access to Philips Collaboration Live, lets me provide real-time consultation to both sonographers and patients to help improve outcomes. Telemedicine has become even more critical during the pandemic, because in-person visits have been greatly limited. Since the onset of COVID-19, we’ve done more than 5,500 telemedicine visits, including many via Philips Collaboration Live, allowing us to reach out and touch patients remotely.”
The impact of Philips tele-ultrasound on patient care
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare leaders recognized the need for digital transformation across the imaging enterprise. Enabled by increasingly connected informatics platforms, imaging innovations that support extended, virtual, and collaborative care are rapidly responding to these needs.
During the AIUM virtual event, Philips will host a panel session of leading clinicians to discuss how they are “going remote” to connect with colleagues and patients in new and effective ways via tele-ultrasound, in continued efforts to transform patient care. The session is open to registration for AIUM attendees. Panelists include:
- Yanick Beaulieu MD, Cardiologist-Intensivist, Medical Officer for Precision Diagnosis, Philips;
- Michael S. Ruma MD, MPH, FACOG, with Perinatal Associates of New Mexico, USA;
- Richard G. Barr MD, PhD, FACR, FSRU, FAIUM, with Southwoods Health in Ohio, USA.
Philips Handheld Ultrasound (Lumify) recognized with recent Frost & Sullivan leadership award
Based on its recent analysis of the global market for integrated telehealth solutions in point-of-care ultrasound, research analyst firm Frost & Sullivan has recognized Philips with the 2020 Global Customer Value Leadership award for Lumify and its revolutionary Reacts collaborative platform and expanded tele-ultrasound capabilities. Noted for its unprecedented connection and collaboration capabilities, Lumify was singled out for its cost-efficient, real-time virtual collaboration during ultrasound examinations, which have become increasingly important during the COVID-19 pandemic. More detail on this most recent worldwide accolade for Lumify is available here.
Visit AIUM 2021 for more detail on Philips participation in the virtual event, and visit Philips advanced tele-ultrasound solutions for more information on Philips Collaboration Live and Philips Handheld Ultrasound (Lumify).
