NYU Medical Center Enhances Collaborative Communications With Video Conferencing Technology
Sony IPELA systems tie together HD-enabled operating rooms & viewing areas
New York University (NYU) School of Medicine is at the forefront of educational institutions that are using technology to streamline how they work and interact with colleagues. Led by Dr. Stephen Colvin, the school's chief of cardiothoracic surgery, NYU has built three fully HD-enabled operating rooms. These rooms, a guest viewing area, a conference room and Dr. Colvin's office, are all connected through the use of Sony's IPELA® visual communications technology.
These systems, comprising the Sony PCS-TL50 and PCS-G70 video conferencing systems, create more effective, real-time communications among each area, so medical personnel can stay up-to-date on procedures in progress, or participate remotely in lectures, discussions or other meetings.
For example, Colvin has a PCS-TL50 system in his office, so he can view procedures in progress from his desk, or display them during boardroom presentations. "I can even watch the preparations being done for surgery, so I know when the team is ready for me to come down to the operating room," Colvin said.
Allan Katz, president of VTS Medical, the systems integrator that managed the equipment installations at NYU, added that NYU is also linked to other New York area hospitals through the PCS-TL50 system, to share footage of procedures and to conduct distance learning.
The use of Sony video conferencing complements NYU's other efforts to use technology in innovative ways. "The imaging and display products we have are very beneficial for several applications, including use as a teaching tool so the fellows, residents and visiting physicians who come here to learn can view our procedures in the best quality image," Colvin said.
Colvin and his team have found that HD video is an ideal way of visualizing the heart, as well as for designing realistic 3-D animations of a beating heart to use in training. "The clarity is so much better," Colvin said. "It gives us the higher resolution needed to better delineate between tissue and fat, for example. Everything is much clearer: the precision, the accuracy, how beautiful things are, how much more realistic everything looks. The 3-D effects are also really powerful."
The improved color definition enabled by the Sony HD monitors is extremely helpful, according to the NYU team. For example, "true" red is often very difficult to capture on video, but the Sony monitors flatten them to make accurate reproduction easier. "Before, we'd have to spend more time playing with lighting and moving things around just to get a good picture," Colvin said.
