How to switch radiology information systems in Australia

Who handles setup and machine configuration?

• QUBS: sets up the system, provides staff training and supplies the clinic with PACS configuration details, such as AE title and IP information.
• Your clinic: enters those details into the imaging machine or contacts the manufacturer to configure it.
• Referrer lists: your clinic supplies the list in Excel and QUBS imports it.
• Other historical records: agree the source export, sample assessment, import scope and validation responsibilities before moving them.

Review the scanner setup checklist with your equipment supplier. Machine compatibility, image transfer and worklist connectivity still need checking for your proposed setup.

Start using QUBS, then migrate agreed history

Migration can take place after your clinic starts using QUBS. Agree which records and workflows are needed for the start date and which historical records will follow in a later stage.

Plan access to essential history during the transition. Confirm the source vendor's export and access terms, how later changes will be reconciled, and who checks patient matching and signs off on each stage. Referrer lists can be supplied in Excel; other records remain subject to the agreed import scope.

1. Map the workflow you cannot interrupt

List each location, room, modality, reporting team and referring practice. Follow a typical patient from referral and booking through the scan, report, billing and delivery. Include exceptions such as changed appointments, amended reports and failed delivery.

Record which systems currently handle each step. A RIS change can affect a separate PACS, modality worklist, billing service, online booking tool, portal or messaging network even when those systems are staying in place.

2. Confirm the source export and proposed import

QUBS imports referrer lists supplied in Excel. Other historical records need source-export and sample assessment before an import scope is agreed.

Ask your current provider what it can export, in which format, under what terms and at what point access ends. Make a record inventory before agreeing to an import scope:

• Patients and identifiers, referring providers and their delivery details.
• Future appointments, examination history, referrals and attached documents.
• Final and amended reports, reporting metadata and any required audit history.
• Invoices, payments, claims and balances that must remain available.
• DICOM studies and prior images if PACS is also changing.

Ask QUBS to review a representative sample and confirm which records can be imported, the required format, any cleanup or matching work, and how historical information will be accessed. Do not assume every item will transfer or appear in the new system in the same way.

3. Check every connection and delivery route

Document modality worklists, image transfer and viewer access, billing and Medicare workflows, online bookings, forms, reporting tools, and report delivery. Identify who owns each interface and which details need updating when the RIS changes.

QUBS supports configured report dispatch through HealthLink and Medical Objects after authorisation, alongside other delivery channels and referrer portal access. Your clinic signs up with the messaging provider and supplies its own account. Check destinations and failed-delivery handling during the transition. See the report delivery guide and integrations.

4. Validate each migration stage

Agree with both vendors how a sample or trial migration can be checked for the stage you are moving. Compare record counts and inspect selected patients across different years, modalities and sites. Check that the correct reports and images remain associated with the correct patient and examination.

Then run a clinic workflow from referral to payment and report delivery. Include a future booking, a prior image, an amended report and a failed delivery. Write down who checks each result and who decides whether the clinic is ready to switch. The test approach is part of the migration scope, not a promise that every source system offers a trial export.

5. Prepare staff, cutover and fallback

QUBS provides staff training. Agree which staff and workflows the sessions cover. Decide when new bookings move to QUBS, who completes each source export, and how changes made after an earlier export will be reconciled.

Before going live, check patient lookup, worklists, image access, report authorisation, referrer delivery and billing using the clinic's actual configuration. Define the problems that would delay the switch and how staff can access essential historical records if a connection or import needs further work. Set a post-switch check for missed bookings, unmatched patients and undelivered reports.

Where QUBS fits the replacement plan

QUBS connects scheduling, patient intake, billing, reporting and authorised report delivery in a cloud Australian RIS workflow. It also offers cloud PACS and image access and supports multi-site imaging groups.

Bring your source export specification, site and modality list, current interfaces and required historical records to a QUBS discussion. Ask for a written scope covering import feasibility, configuration, testing, training, cutover responsibilities and any migration charge. Published QUBS subscription pricing is based on clinic type and included scan volume; it does not by itself establish the cost of your migration.

For future portability, the current QUBS Service Agreement says customers may export Customer Data during the subscription and that QUBS will provide a copy upon termination. Review the terms applicable to your clinic and confirm the format and retrieval process you would need.

QUBS can provide DICOM images, reports, patient records and appointments. Large-volume exports may incur charges. Agree the export scope, report and record formats, timeframe and secure handover arrangements for your clinic.

Frequently asked questions