The key advantages of the Medstrat PACS system are a result of the unique integration of the echoes Server and the echoes Browser technology. An easy way to think of the relationship is to think of the echoes Server as the hardware behind the Medstrat PACS system and the echoes Browser as the software.
The Medstrat PACS system is viewed and used through the echoes Browser. The echoes Server operates behind the scenes. The echoes Browser operates very much like standard web browsers such as Internet Explorer or Firefox. Even though the echoes Browser is a web browser "under the hood" to allow for fast, easy, anywhere access, it looks, feels and works just like a standard Windows application. Plus, it can be downloaded from the Medstrat website and installed anywhere you are - just like you would download and install Firefox or Chrome.
The Advantages of a Browser
Our PACS solution's scalability and robustness are a direct benefit of the development of our own browser platform. Unlike other web PACS solutions, the echoes Browser is not limited by a parent program (such as Internet Explorer). The echoes Browser has access to as much memory as it needs and can open large MRI studies containing hundreds of images. Java applets launched by Internet Explorer are limited in the amount of memory they can use and may be unable to open studies containing more than tens of images. Plus, when you use the echoes Browser, if an automatic update of Internet Explorer or Java introduces a bug into either solution, your practice is unaffected.
Built for Speed
One of the reasons the Medstrat PACS system is so fast is because of the echoes Server and the echoes Browser architecture. Patient images have very large file sizes. If a large amount of files are being transferred simultaneously over an office network, the entire network will slow down quickly resulting in long wait times for images to load up. In conventional PACS systems, every image is "pushed" from the central server to each and every workstation for possible viewing. If an office has 8 workstations, that server must send 8 copies of that single image file to every workstation. In contrast, the Medstrat PACS system "pulls" images from the echoes Server only when needed, so when an image is viewed, it only travels across the network once. The "pull" architecture greatly reduces network traffic and results in very fast image loading and viewing, both in and outside the office.
Built for Ease of Use
Customers tell us all the time how easy and simple the echoes Browser is to use. That's because we built the software interface to work the way orthopedic surgeons work everyday. We've made it simple to view, sort, organize and annotate patient images. Here are just a few of the key features of the echoes Browser user interface:
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