August 30, 2010 – A strategic alliance has been launched to create New York Radiology Alliance. It will offer access to subspecialists, next-generation technology, clinical data benchmarking and the shared expertise of nearly 200 radiologists nationwide to enhance the quality and efficiency of imaging services for patients and providers in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area. The merger between Virtual Radiologic (vRad) and S&D Medical, a New York-based radiology practice, will take effect October 1, 2010. “S&D has used a combination of onsite and virtual radiology for years to enhance productivity and service to our clients. As we looked at the growth of our practice and the changing landscape of the healthcare industry, we had to find more efficient ways to meet the increasing demands for enhanced service, improved quality and lower costs.” said Dr. Kenneth Schwartz, S&D Medical managing partner. “While weighing the cost and associated risk of new technology and additional staffing, we approached vRad about the possible synergies of further integrating our already productive relationship.” “Managing a group this large and diverse requires sophisticated solutions to load-balance studies across radiologists and deliver industry-leading turnaround times. vRad’s technology, commitment to innovation and a shared vision of radiology’s future made full integration seem like a natural fit,” he added. S&D had been a customer of vRad since 2008 and early adopter of its vRad Enterprise Connect platform. vRad Enterprise Connect is the core technology platform vRad uses to manage and read more than three million studies annually from over 1,200 facilities. vRad recently released its commercial version vRad Enterprise Connect 3.0 that will enhance the practice’s productivity with expedited time to diagnosis and treatment, while lowering the overall cost of patient care for New York Radiology Alliance customers. “As the healthcare market continues to rapidly evolve, we see demands for new and innovative care delivery models," said Rob Kill, vRad president and chief executive officer. "Partnerships like these will be an important tool to optimize care, while reducing overall costs.”
