Cheryl Williams, M.D., isn’t afraid of technology, even if she laughingly calls herself “computer illiterate.”
Every Friday from 8 to 9 a.m., the associate professor of radiology participates in a conference between physicians and administrators at UNMC’s Omaha campus and the professional offices at Village Pointe.
The conference — conducted with the help of the Vidyo system unveiled last year by ITS video services — includes X-ray findings, mammograms, discussions about images on slides, and reports from pathology. It involves a patient’s entire care team.
Sound difficult to put together? It isn’t.
“We can discuss one patient’s case in its entirety, then move on to the next patient,” she said. “You can show images, point to specific areas on images, everyone can see.”
Similarly, pathologists are able to put a patient’s biopsy under a microscope and project the image directly to colleagues at Village Pointe, said William West, M.D., associate professor of pathology and microbiology.
Bringing the patient-care teams together in person would be a logistical nightmare, Dr. Williams said, but with Vidyo, everybody can join in.
“It’s excellent,” she said.
Part of the reason UNMC adopted Vidyo is its simplicity and versatility, said Max Thacker, associate director of ITS video services. He pointed out that the technology was suitable for telehealth, educational activities such as distance learning, and even meetings.
“We also wanted to get more into mobile tech,” he said. “Vidyo addresses all of this and is compatible with existing distance learning software.”
Faculty members or other staff hoping to use the system are invited to sit down with Thacker’s staff, who will be able to tailor Vidyo to each specific need, including factors such as:
- Who is being called?
- Do you need guest links or accounts, as with students or patients?
- What system are you working on? (Vidyo works with PCs, Macs, iPads and other platforms.)
“It’s highly secure, it’s high-definition, and it’s no cost,” Thacker said. “In some cases, a user might need to add a web cam, but that’s really about it.”
Once a user is trained, which Thacker said takes less than 10 minutes, they can save the Vidyo app on their desktop and can set up a personal “buddy list” of frequently called people.
“This is a technology that can really help people, and it is simpler to use than people think,” he said.