Medical imaging– such as x-rays and scans– comprises one of the most essential components any medical record. If you’re using a medical record in litigation or in settling an insurance claim, medical imaging provides direct visual evidence of an injury or physical condition. To the properly trained eye, medical imaging shows the type of injury or condition, its precise location, its severity, healing patterns, and a wealth of other facts. In these cases, a picture can be worth far more than a thousand words.
Types of Medical Imaging
Medical imaging is an umbrella term used to cover all the different ways healthcare providers can take pictures of the inside of a human body. Some procedures, such as x-rays, are better suited for solid tissues such as bone. Other procedures, such as ultrasound, are better suited for soft tissues. The most common types of medical imaging include the following:
Different types of imaging are used for different needs and conditions. The most common types of medical imaging are listed below, and The Records Company retrieves them all:
- X-rays
- Computerized Tomography (CT) Scans
- Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scans
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
- Ultrasound
- Endoscopy
Potential Pitfalls in Retrieving Medical Imaging
As important as medical imaging is to the parties who need these images to build a case or settle a claim, the images themselves aren’t always easy to get. A standard request for a medical record does not necessarily include the medical images.
In some cases, the healthcare provider doesn’t have the technology to include the imaging in the primary record. This situation is less common if the records are stored in an electronic record (EHR), but much depends on the age of the records and the format of the original imaging.
Availability of imaging can also vary based on the practices, policies, and resources of individual healthcare providers. Some providers do imaging in-house, in their own facilities, and others outsource imaging to different providers, which means the imaging may be in a completely different record with a different provider.
Variations in state regulations also affect the availability of medical records imaging. Some states treat medical imaging and primary medical records as different entities, assigning different fee schedules for their retrieval.
Medical Imaging Retrieval Made Easy
The maze of technology, providers, and regulations can lead to wasted time and frustration if you’re retrieving your own records. The Records Company provides a better way to get the medical imaging records you need. Because we are experts in medical records retrieval, we already know how to get through that maze. We know what types of images to look for in conjunction with a given primary medical record. We know the providers because we’ve worked with them before. Our nationwide reach means we know the requirements for obtaining imaging in all 50 states– and we know the fee schedules for medical imaging records, so we can ensure fair and accurate charges for retrieval. In short, our superior knowledge gets your request to the front of the line and gets the imaging you need into your hands, pronto. Contact us today for more information about how we streamline medical image retrieval and so much more.