USPTO issues notice of allowance for vRad's patent applications

Virtual Radiologic Corporation (NASDAQ:VRAD), a national radiology practice and a leader in the development of radiologist workflow technology, received notice of allowance of a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for several applications within its technology portfolio. The pending patent, titled "Multiple Resource Planning System," recognizes the rules-based technology vRad uses to receive orders over the internet and automatically assign them to radiologists based on a set of business and clinical rules, including subspecialty training, licensing, credentialing, workload, hospital preferences and other customized parameters.

“These proprietary automations strengthen the technology engine we use to run one of the largest radiology practices in the U.S. and the technology solutions we offer to our customers”

Additionally, the patent will cover vRad's order forecasting and radiologist scheduling applications. Collectively these analyze historical patterns of previous study volume from the aggregation of multiple hospitals to prepare radiology order forecasts and future radiologist work schedules including licensing and credentialing needs.

This pending patent demonstrates vRad's unique position as a comprehensive radiology services provider and a leader in technology development for radiology. "vRad has evolved into much more than just a teleradiology practice," said Rob Kill, vRad chairman and chief executive officer. "We are a national practice helping local radiologists and hospitals deliver the highest quality of patient care in the most cost-effective manner through both technology and clinical solutions."

Rick Jennings, vRad's chief technology officer, said this patent is the result of years of technology investment, experience and a development process centered on radiology user input and keeping patient care at the forefront of all activities. "These proprietary automations strengthen the technology engine we use to run one of the largest radiology practices in the U.S. and the technology solutions we offer to our customers," Jennings said. "Our technology helps boost radiologist productivity and enables the delivery of high quality patient care. It all boils down to routing the study quickly to the right radiologist at the right time to improve speed of diagnosis and patient care while reducing overall system costs."