Overview:

Interoperability across medical imaging is no longer optional—it is foundational to the future of connected, scalable, and patient-centered care. In this webinar, we will review results from the recent SIIM-DPA-CAP DICOM Toolkit Survey and discuss what they reveal about the current state of standards adoption in digital pathology. Additionally, the session will examine the critical role of DICOM and IHE in supporting consistent imaging metadata and enabling interoperability across pathology, radiology, and other imaging-rich specialties. A panel featuring representatives from DPA, CAP, SIIM and pathologists with standards based interoperability, including deployment for clinical use, will share perspectives on current challenges, emerging opportunities, and the importance of coordinated action.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
1. Summarize the key findings of the recent DICOM Toolkit Survey and their implications for standards adoption and interoperability in medical imaging.
2. Describe the importance of DICOM and IHE standards in supporting consistent, interoperable imaging metadata across pathology, radiology, and other imaging domains.
3. Discuss the role of DPA in accelerating cross-organizational collaboration in advancing practical interoperability for clinical care, operations, and innovation.

Presenter (s):

Rajesh Dash, MD

• Duke University Health System
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Dr. Dash is a pathologist and clinical informaticist. He serves as Vice-Chair for Anatomic Pathology and Informatics in the Department of Pathology and as Director for laboratory informatics strategy for Duke University Health System in Durham NC. He has over 25 years of diverse experience in pathology, with a focus on breast cancer diagnostics, cytopathology, and laboratory informatics. Dr. Dash has been involved in several national and international IT related efforts. He has served on many committees for the College of American Pathologists (CAP), including a term on the Board of Governors and most recently chaired the Artificial Intelligence committee. He served as the first pathologist member of the Office of the National Coordinator’s Healthcare IT Standards Committee (HITSC). He also serves as planning co-chair for the “Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine” (IHE PALM) domain, focused on lab data interoperability.

• Alexander Towbin, MD, FAAP, FACR, FSIIM, FICIS
• Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
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Alexander J. Towbin, MD is Professor of Radiology and the Neil D. Johnson Chair of Radiology Informatics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. He also serves as Associate Chief of Radiology, Associate Chief Medical Information Officer, and Associate Chief of Staff. Internationally recognized for advancing pediatric radiology, imaging informatics, and quality improvement, he brings particular expertise in abdominal and cancer imaging and in the use of imaging data to improve clinical care and interoperability across the healthcare enterprise.

A prolific scholar and educator, Dr. Towbin has delivered invited lectures worldwide and published more than 400 manuscripts and 150 book chapters. He currently serves as Chair-Elect of the Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine and previously served as co-chair of the HIMSS–SIIM Enterprise Imaging Community. His work bridges clinical care, research, and informatics to improve outcomes for children, families, and the healthcare workforce.

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• Kevin Schap, MScBMI
• College of American Pathologists
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Kevin Schap, MScBMI, is Director of Clinical Informatics, Digital Pathology, and Data Science at the College of American Pathologists. He specializes in advancing digital pathology standards, with expertise in DICOM whole slide imaging (WSI) and IHE Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PaLM) interoperability frameworks. Kevin oversees multiple CAP initiatives, including the AI Committee, Digital and Computational Pathology Committee, Informatics Committee, and the Council on Informatics and Pathology Innovation. His work focuses on accelerating standards adoption and developing educational strategies that empower pathologists to effectively evaluate and integrate artificial intelligence tools into clinical practice.

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• Mustafa Yousif, MD
• University of Michigan
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Dr. Mustafa Yousif is the Associate Chief Medical Information Officer, Associate Director of Pathology Informatics, Assistant Professor of Pathology Informatics, and Medical Director of Digital Pathology at the University of Michigan. He completed his anatomical and clinical pathology residency at Wake Forest University, followed by fellowships in Gynecologic and Breast Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and Pathology Informatics at the University of Michigan. Dr. Yousif serves as Co-chair of DICOM WG-26: Pathology. His research focuses on digital pathology, artificial intelligence, computer vision, and image analysis, alongside gynecologic and breast pathology.

Moderator (s):

John Groth, MD

Pathologist

Endeavor Health

Jennifer Samboy, MHA

Digital Transformation Leader

Philips Digital & Computational Pathology