Claims processing speeds up.

Healthcare providers, payors and patients alike are somewhat dubious about using the Web to administer transactions. Everyone agrees that it would save time and money. But the real-time exchange of funds inherent to e-business would require payors and patients to settle up front. And technology can make employees uncomfortable, not to mention obsolete.

Managing managed care.

Managed care trends--such as acquisitions of local physician practices, mergers among payor and provider organizations and changes to the current role of managing care--means a difference in the way information systems must operate.

Date with destiny.

The focus of healthcare IT has tended to be on the back end: billing, financial systems and administration. This is now changing as healthcare facilities realize that patients are customers, and more emphasis must be placed on that first patient contact: scheduling.

Integrating PACS power.

While the technology side of PACS is strong, it's the way you implement your PACS--and especially the way you integrate your PACS with your hospital and radiology information system--that makes all the difference.