Solving Radiology’s Biggest Challenges: Efficiency, Staffing, and Scalability 

July 1, 2025

As imaging volumes rise and care delivery becomes more distributed, radiologists are expected to deliver faster answers across more modalities, sites, and systems. Staffing shortages are stretching teams thin, inefficient workflows delay time to diagnosis, and technical and operational inefficiencies are only compounding this strain.  

Rather than patching existing systems with stopgap fixes, what health systems need is infrastructure that adapts to pressure and solutions to automate what slows them down. Without a solid foundation of technological solutions, scaling sustainably poses a significant challenge.  

Intelerad’s solutions are built to address these challenges and help radiology teams keep pace with rising imaging volume without compromising quality or burning out their staff.  

Challenge One: Efficiency Gaps are Slowing Down Care 

When radiologists have to spend time navigating disjointed systems, manually sorting through worklists, or launching external tools for analysis, efficiency suffers, and so does patient care. The right solutions can give radiology teams more time in their day.  

  • With InteleOrchestrator, exams are routed based on real-time factors like subspecialty, availability, and urgency, ensuring the right radiologist sees the right study at the right time. InteleOrchestrator automatically launches the appropriate viewer and reporting tool for each exam, reducing clicks, context-switching, and cognitive load. The auto-next reading mode keeps work flowing by removing the need to return to the worklist after each case. 
  • InteleGence integrates best-in-class AI algorithms that automatically surface relevant AI findings directly into the viewer. Within InteleOrchestrator, these findings are then dynamically prioritized in the reading queue based on criticality, meaning emergent cases are never overlooked, and radiologists can focus where their expertise is needed most.  
  • InteleShare supports efficiency by automating inbound and outbound image sharing. Outside imaging is ingested and matched automatically, giving radiologists immediate access to priors in the patient’s chart without manual uploads, CD burns, or delays. This reduces turnaround time and enables faster, more informed reads, especially for follow-ups and comparisons. 

By automating what slows down radiologists and optimizing how work is shared, assigned, and performed, Intelerad helps teams read more efficiently, maintain accuracy, and deliver faster results to care teams and patients alike. 

Challenge Two: Staffing Shortages are Stretching Teams Thin 

Demand for imaging is rising, but the supply for radiologists—especially subspecialists—is not keeping pace. If radiology departments can’t get more people, then teams need better tools to keep up without burning out.  

So, how can radiology groups and health systems optimize their existing resources? 

  • Enabling remote reading with IntelePACS allows radiologists to work securely and reliably from anywhere. This flexibility makes it easier to offer extended coverage, fill scheduling gaps, and utilize part-time or remote staff without needing additional on-site employees.  
  • Automating study distribution with InteleOrchestrator ensures each exam is routed to the right radiologist based on subspecialty, availability, and urgency. By balancing workloads and removing cherry-picking, it reduces burnout and helps departments operate more efficiently, even when headcount is limited. 
  • Offloading infrastructure management with Intelerad Cloud frees up IT and administrative staff by shifting system maintenance, security, and uptime responsibilities to Intelerad. That means internal resources can spend less time supporting operations, and more time on initiatives that directly impact care delivery. 

These solutions help organizations adapt to workforce shortages, not by working harder, but by working smarter. The result is a leaner, more agile radiology department that can continue to deliver high-quality care even under staffing pressure. 

Challenge Three: Scalability Without Disruption 

Radiology groups and health systems are growing through acquisitions, new service lines, and multi-site expansion. In fact, between 2014 and 2023, the number of practices with 100+ radiologists surged 349% 

As practices scale, many find themselves tangled in a web of incompatible systems, inconsistent workflows, and siloed data. Replacing existing infrastructure can be costly and disruptive but doing nothing leaves teams stuck with fragmented operations that can’t keep up with demand. 

With the right approach, organizations can scale without overhauling everything.  

  • Centralizing image management with IntelePACS allows organizations to overlay disparate PACS and unify workflows without full system replacement. This minimizes disruption during expansion while ensuring all radiologists can read from a single, consistent environment. 
  • Automating image exchange with InteleShare makes it easy to send and receive imaging across facilities, networks, and systems; no disks, no VPNs, no delays. As organizations grow, this ensures timely access to priors and reduces onboarding friction for new sites. 
  • Offloading backend infrastructure to Intelerad Cloud accelerates deployment timelines and reduces the strain on internal IT during periods of rapid growth. With built-in redundancy and high availability, organizations can scale confidently, without risking downtime. 

By supporting interoperability, automation, oversight, and operational consistency, Intelerad helps radiology departments grow strategically. Whether you’re adding sites, absorbing new systems, or standardizing operations across regions, we help you scale with stability.  

Imaging That Works Smarter at Scale 

The role of advanced imaging as a diagnostic tool is only growing, and so are the pressures. Teams are being asked to move faster and adapt to constant change while navigating staffing shortages and fragmented infrastructure. Operational concerns like efficiency, staffing, and scalability are also tied to care quality and dictate your ability to grow sustainably, so the right infrastructure can make all the difference.  

Intelerad’s solutions help radiology teams do more with less, expand without disruption, and streamline how work gets done. Schedule a demo to see how Intelerad can help your team work smarter.