Streamlining storage and enhancing access: Bronson’s journey

Bronson Healthcare, a not-for-profit health system with 4 acute care hospitals in southwest Michigan, faced challenges with its end-of-life storage archive, resource allocation, data center relocation and provider-patient experience. Partnering with us, they implemented a fully managed cloud-native imaging archive solution, resulting in improved access, faster system speed, reduced administrative burden and positive feedback from providers. The collaboration enabled Bronson to optimize operations, empower staff, and position themselves for future innovation in health care.

Bronson Healthcare faced several challenges to their imaging storage capabilities. Their storage archive had reached its end of life, requiring a significant capital expenditure to manage the necessary storage, primarily for radiology and cardiology archives. This challenge led Bronson to explore alternative solutions to avoid costly investments and free up resources for other strategic initiatives. Additionally, Bronson needed to relocate their primary data center due to the existing building’s planned demolition. This presented logistical and operational complexities that needed to be addressed. The organization also recognized the need to reduce technical debt and complexity associated with maintaining their on-premises infrastructure.

Bronson wanted to improve the provider and patient experience by enabling quick imaging access for providers and empowering patients to view their own images. 

Achieving seamless information sharing and accessibility posed a challenge, which underscored the need for a comprehensive solution.

Bronson leveraged the relationship with their PACS services provider, which had been established since the early 2000s. “We were exploring cloud solutions and have maintained a strong partnership with our PACS provider,” said Dr. Ash Goel, CIO of Bronson.

At the time of the search, radiologists were reading 500,000 new studies annually with Change Healthcare Radiology Solutions™, and 37,500 studies annually through its cardiology PACS, Change Healthcare Cardiology Solutions™. These systems were maintained by a team of 3 full-time PACS administrators. This existing partnership provided a strong foundation to collaborate on development.

To avoid the costly and resource-intensive process of a complete technology overhaul, Bronson opted for a gradual transition to a cloud-native architecture beginning with its imaging archive and viewer. They chose Change Healthcare Stratus Imaging Archive (Stratus Imaging Archive), a fully managed, comprehensive and efficient storage solution, because it would enable them to offload system management and maintenance, freeing their team to focus on higher-value tasks and strategic initiatives. 

Bronson’s implementation and training phase was a comprehensive and involved process, characterized by deep collaboration between the 2 partners.

From analysts to senior executives, both teams were actively involved in managing expectations and ensuring the solutions worked effectively for Bronson.

Implementation began during the COVID-19 pandemic, which introduced additional complexity due to shifting priorities. “We have dealt with a lot of historical data from acquisitions and mergers, stored in various formats and systems. We spent considerable time focusing on a tiny fraction of data migration failures, until we finally resolved to save it off and move forward,” said Dr. Goel. In the end, Bronson decided to manage .05% of the images through a local archival process.

Optum demonstrated a strong understanding of traditional imaging workflows within the organization. However, the implementation also highlighted the need to adapt to grassroots workflows that emerged in individual offices or specialty areas. Bronson recognized the importance of collaboration to seamlessly integrate these specialized workflows.

The overall implementation process was very successful. “It was a comprehensive process. We felt fully engaged with everyone from Stratus Imaging, from analysts to top executives, which ensured our outcomes met expectations and the systems functioned effectively for us,” said Dr. Goel.

Training played a crucial role in the implementation process, and the solutions team provided comprehensive training tailored to Bronson’s specific needs and workflows. This empowered Bronson’s staff to effectively utilize the new solution and maximize its potential.

The Stratus Imaging Archive implementation at Bronson has yielded significant positive results across various aspects of its operations. Users have provided highly positive feedback on the new solution, emphasizing its effectiveness and usability. Providers have particularly appreciated the Stratus Imaging Archive and Viewer.

More than 4,000 providers accessed over 216,000 studies seamlessly over the course of a year via the Change Healthcare Stratus Imaging Viewer (Stratus Imaging Viewer) through the electronic medical record (EMR). This feature has provided greater flexibility and convenience for providers in accessing the medical images and data that are required to make informed decisions.

The new system has also demonstrated improved speed and agility compared to the previous solution. Bronson has experienced faster system performance, resulting in more efficient image retrieval and enhanced workflow efficiency. Over 6 months, providers accessed more than 273,000 studies from the cloud archive. Using patented high-speed streaming technology, providers were able to start viewing images before the full study loaded, with an average time to first image of 3.41 seconds and 28.86 seconds for the full study to load. Bronson radiologists accessing mammography studies in-house experienced an average 4.79 second time-to-first-image speed downloading from the cloud archive and a 23.48 second loading time for the entire study.¹

The system has also proven to be highly accessible, with less than one hour a year of downtime for the Stratus Imaging Archive and Stratus Imaging Viewer. 

Bronson’s robust Epic Community Connect partnership, coupled with the Stratus Imaging Archive and Viewer, has significantly reduced administrative burden and eliminated the need for repeated tests for patients. Providers now have a broad view of patient images, regardless of where they are in the system, helping to improve the clinical experience and reduce unnecessary procedures.

In collaboration with Optum, Bronson successfully developed an integration between Epic MyChart and the Stratus Imaging Viewer for the cloud archive. Within 17 months, patients accessed over 375,000 studies.² “The Epic MyChart and Stratus Imaging Viewer integration for our cloud archive has been a remarkable add-on for furthering our patients' access to their information. Patients can now easily view their own images, which improves communication with their providers. This achievement is a testament to the importance of our collaboration with Optum,” said Dr. Goel.

The clinical PACS team has experienced a notable reduction in their workload, enabling them to focus more on collaborating with radiologists and facilitating workflows. The implementation has optimized their time and improved their support for radiologists. “Our clinical PACS team now spends more time with radiologists to ensure they understand necessary workflows, as we operate in a hybrid environment. Providers have noticed improvements and expressed their appreciation, which is rare,” said Kimberly Hubbard, director of radiology.

Bronson also appreciates the value of the customer advocacy program provided. “Our customer success manager is outstanding. She’s always just a call away, advocating for us to ensure we have the necessary support and tools. More organizations could benefit from genuine customer advocacy programs, as needs vary over time,” remarked Kimberly Hubbard.

The Stratus Imaging Archive implementation at Bronson has delivered exceptional results. Positive feedback from end users, improved system speed and agility, enhanced clinical workflows, reduced administrative burden and strong customer support have collectively contributed to a highly successful outcome. The new solution has significantly improved the provider and patient experience while optimizing operational efficiency.