Case Study: Abaana Heart Healers achieves rapid international cardiac image sharing and saves weeks in patient transfers with lifeIMAGE

Electronic image transfer facilitates international cardiology care

Abaana Heart Healers is a nonprofit that treats Ugandan children with congenital heart defects and trains local teams, but time-sensitive cases often require transfer to U.S. hospitals. Shipping CDs and contacting multiple hospitals caused dangerous delays, so the team adopted an account on the lifeIMAGE network to instantly share cardiac imaging—especially echocardiograms—with stateside specialists.

lifeIMAGE enabled onsite upload and simultaneous sharing of studies and reports so physicians can view, annotate, and download DICOMs immediately. Over two years Abaana Heart Healers shared 675 exams via lifeIMAGE, bypassed 2–3 weeks of CD shipping, facilitated faster hospital acceptances (including a critically ill two-year-old), improved real-time consultations and care planning, and established new global referral relationships.

Abaana Heart Healers

Michele Eller

International Patient Coordinator