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The article reports on the launch of PerfectServe clinical communication system by Advocate General Hospital of Illinois. According to Michael McKenna, managing director (MD) of medical management at Advocate, PerfectServe provides numerous ways to get information or leave messages to a doctor based on their unique preferences. PerfectServe enables the 1,400 nurses and 1,200 physicians to easily and quickly link with anyone on the medical staff of the hospital by dialing a single number.

The article focuses on the efforts to develop automated triage systems according to studies presented at the annual Radiological Society of North America meeting held in Chicago, Illinois in September 2005. The RadStream triage system at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Ohio has improved reading times for patient examinations. The in-house software algorithm at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center prioritizes patient examination by urgent notifications by physicians. The system at a hospital gathers data from electronic medical record.

Reports on the theft of imaging equipment from three hospitals in Chicago, Illinois, which shows sign of national hospital crime, as of January 2004. Worth of imaging equipment stolen; Reasons behind the increase in the number of hospital equipment theft in the U.S.; Arrest of several thieves across the nation.

The theft of high-tech equipment from three Chicago-area hospitals last month has local law enforcement authorities wondering if the same criminal rings that have targeted hospitals in Florida and Texas have moved to the Midwest. In a matter of days, thieves made off with $110,000 worth of sophisticated ultrasound equipment from Rush Oak Park Hospital and $60,000 worth of similar gear from the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago. It is clear that demand for high-tech medical gear is moving beyond hospitals to an array of clinics and medical practices that might look for ways to save money on the devices.

The article focuses on financial problems faced by local hospitals in Chicago, Illinois, due to weight-loss surgery treatments. These hospitals have been losing money in hurry to take advantage of seemingly unlimited number of patients keen to lose weight by weight-loss surgery. Many hospitals are finding that the surgery is not delivering the kind of profits they were hoping for. The fact that one in 100 patients nationwide die following the procedure has not had any apparent effect on demand. Neither has the price, which can range from $15,000 to $40,000. Yet most hospitals are loosing money on the operation. Most hospitals have to retrofit their facilities to handle larger patients, buying oversized and re-inforced furniture for waiting rooms, stronger operating room tables that cost upwards of $40,000 and a host of other items. INSET: HEAVY-DUTY COSTS.

Features the exam table for doctors and patients from Chicago, Illinois-based Goodtime Medical.