Alibaba Health and Carestream Forge Strategic Partnership to Launch Cloud-Based Medical Imaging Platform

On August 19, Alibaba Health and Carestream Health signed a strategic cooperation agreement to jointly build an imaging diagnosis platform on the Alibaba Health Cloud Hospital Platform. The two parties will leverage the Cloud Hospital Platform to implement an internet-based operational model for imaging centers, providing synchronized online and offline services to medical institutions, physicians, and patients on the platform.

Building a Professional Platform for Medical Imaging

In a recent special report on medical imaging, VCBeat stated that for Western medicine practitioners, leveraging medical imaging to achieve more accurate diagnoses has become a common practice, with 70% of clinical diagnoses relying on medical imaging. As the most standardized product in the diagnosis and treatment process, medical imaging is increasingly moving to the cloud, marking a significant trend.

Pursuant to the cooperation agreement between Alibaba Health and Carestream Health, Carestream Health provides software solutions for the PACS/RIS data center, imaging specialist clients, and image viewing on Alibaba Health’s Cloud Hospital Platform. The latter integrates these software components to establish a specialized medical imaging platform, facilitating subsequent joint operations and implementation by both parties. Currently, Carestream Health’s “Mobile Medical Imaging Access Platform” is the only Android and iOS mobile medical imaging diagnostic product worldwide to have received certification from both the U.S. FDA and China’s CFDA. As a result, physicians on Alibaba Health’s Cloud Hospital may be able to provide diagnostic opinions on medical images via mobile devices.

According to the agreement, after Alibaba Health’s mobile app and PC-based Cloud Hospital platform integrate Carestream Health’s services, medical images captured by patients on the platform will be stored in the cloud. Patients can directly request diagnostic interpretations from physicians within the Cloud Hospital. “Images taken by patients are uploaded in real time to the Cloud Hospital’s imaging diagnosis platform. With patient authorization, these images can be accessed for remote consultations and by referring healthcare institutions. This eliminates the need for patients to carry traditional film-based medical images, which are prone to damage.” In a scenario described by Ni Jianwen, Vice President of Alibaba Health, a patient in Ningxia could authorize physicians at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital to review their medical images. Only after the physicians confirm the necessity of a referral would the patient travel to Beijing, without having to bring along fragile image films during the journey.



After the images and reports of patients receiving consultations on the Alibaba Health Cloud Hospital Platform are uploaded to the platform, the platform sends SMS notifications to the patients, who can then access their images and reports via “My Browser.”

 

May provide users withNFLExercise Management Services

In 2015, more than 300 football players at the National Football League (NFL) Scouting Combine were able to obtain high-quality diagnostic images within seconds during their medical examinations using Carestream’s digital radiography products. Carestream has jointly developed a new 3D medical imaging system with the Department of Orthopaedic Sports Medicine at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, to capture orthopedic images of patients’ extremities (knees, legs, feet, arms, and hands), providing diagnostic services for professional athletes and various recreational sports enthusiasts.

“We are working closely with outstanding radiologic technologists, physicians, and athletic trainers in the fields of orthopedics and sports medicine to develop novel diagnostic imaging products. Our goal is to create new solutions tailored for athletes and sports enthusiasts in the general population, thereby significantly enhancing their diagnosis and treatment services,” said Diana L. Nole, President of Carestream Digital Health Solutions.

In the future, Alibaba Health may leverage Carestream Health’s technology—used by the National Football League (NFL) to assess and evaluate player performance—in collaborations with Chinese sports programs and athletic brands. By analyzing health imaging data through big data analytics, it aims to provide equally professional sports technology and health management solutions for both general users and athletes in China. Alibaba Health may further apply Carestream’s sports imaging technology to offer professional sports management advice to everyday users: fitness enthusiasts using the Alibaba Health app will have their simple jogging data recorded and uploaded via smart devices; when combined and analyzed with their health imaging data, this will yield tailored recommendations on running posture and injury prevention.

Supporting Carestream Health’s Expansion into Internet-Based Services

Carestream Health, formerly the Health Group of Eastman Kodak Company, was acquired in late 2006 by Onex, a Canadian private equity firm, for $2.55 billion. Currently, Carestream Health is the world’s largest medical imaging and information technology company, with its products and services present in 90% of hospitals worldwide and holding more than 1,000 patents in medical and dental imaging and information technology. In 2013, Carestream became a supplier to the U.S. Navy, providing Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS) for the Navy’s medical facilities.

In recent years, Carestream Health has begun developing mobile internet solutions for medical imaging. Liu Jie, President of Greater China and Vice President of Global Emerging Business Development at Carestream Health, stated that the company aims to expand internet-based storage of imaging data through its collaboration with AliHealth. Building on this foundation, the partnership will leverage big data mining and analytics to provide physicians with more accurate diagnostic and treatment decisions, while delivering tangible convenience to patients.