At RSNA 2011 on Monday, radiologists and imaging professionals from across the country and around the world prepped themselves to make the most of a fast-changing healthcare landscape – one in which health IT will play an increasing and pivotal role.

In a session titled "Radiology Informatics: Fundamentals for the Future," Keith Dreyer, DO, vice chairman of radiology computing and information sciences at Massachusetts General Hospital, explained how quality mandates surrounding image interpretation, reporting and access mean that informatics and IT will be soon brought more to the fore than ever. In fact, they herald a "new age for radiology," he said.

[See also: Imaging organization forges ahead to meet MU.]

Dreyer explained how radiology information systems (RIS) and picture archiving communication systems (PACS) as they exist today are adequate, but lacking.

RIS, he said, are too department-centric, and will have to do a better job improving access to key clinical information via electronic health records, personal health records and health information exchanges. Big strides still have to be made when it comes to physician and patient interaction too.

Indeed, he said, "meaningful use support will have to come from RIS."

PACS face a different set of problems. They're "monolithic," said Dreyer – having evinced very slow innovation. But an "electronic version of film" is not enough for the new age of connected health, said Dreyer. PACS need to "better exploit the new paradigm," and follow the lead, for example, of models such as Apple's app store.

[See also: RSNA demo offers first-hand look at image sharing .]

The future, said Dreyer, will see more of a move toward vendor-neutral archives (VNA) and cloud storage. "Image management will need to be overhauled," he said. Patient-centered workflow will be the rule, and radiology will have to go beyond the department walls. Moreover, the push from the feds to integrate imaging in HIE is just the beginning: "Government intervention is here to stay."

Radiology will soon be affected by health IT of all stripes – from clinical decision support to personal health records to mobile computing, which Dreyer predicted will see "rapid growth" in the sector.

So what does that all mean for radiologists? They'll be "more virtual," for one thing, with telemedicine technology translating to a "further flattening of the landscape," said Dreyer

There will be a "further separation of acquisition and interpretation," he said, and "overall use of imaging will be managed." And, as in the rest of healthcare nowadays, "quality and cost will become more transparent."

Still, said Dreyer, even with all this change in the offing, informatics is still "in its infancy."

Bigger changes loom, few of which anyone can predict. In part, he said, that's because – apropos to this vaunted shift toward consumer-driven healthcare – "consumer technology is driving the curve" for much of health IT and radiology innovation.