The IP Address or Internet Protocol address is an address assigned to a computer so that it can talk to other computers on a network. An address needs to be unique to the network segment that it is on, but that same address can be on another network. A few addresses are even designated to be unique to the world and exist only once.

When troubleshooting network issues such as an image wont send to the PACS server, you can use the ping utility that uses the IP. It simply sends a small packet of information to another computer and if the other computer receives that ping, meaning that it is on the network and working, it sends a response back telling you it is alive.

If it helps to visualize, the address of a device can be compared to your street address, which is unique to your town but not unique to your state or country. Now, there may be many 1035 Union Street address in the country but consider each town as its own network segment.

This protocol is found on the 3rd layer of the OSI model.

An Internet Protocol address is built off of 4 octets (8 binary digits), each octet being 1 byte in length. Therefore an entire address would be 4 bytes in length. The image below is an example of how an address is organized. 

 In an upcoming article, we'll review the various classes of networks and how they work into subnets. 

Radiology workflow! It is where the money is in the PACS world. Even the most technically superior PACS will not offer an expected ROI if a department can’t get its electronic processes correct.

As a PACS Administrator, understanding the processes within the department helps you to know where to look when specific incidents occur. Having a solid understanding of how information travels throughout the department will also allow you to analyze your PACS to make improvements if you are not getting the performance that you expected. Installing a new PACS? Learning this information will be instrumental in helping you prepare for that new PACS.

As you progress through the pages within this section, you will find information about how a typical imaging department operates from the time an order is entered until the final report is signed.

If you are the IT born PACS Administrator, this section will be critical for you. For the rad-tech born PACS Administrators, some of this will be review but some of it will also help you understand what is happening behind the scenes in the HIS/RIS and PACS.

Topics in the Radiology Workflow menu include: Order Entry Specifics, Modality Worklist Selection, Image Acquisition, Study Reading, Report Generation.