QA Station: A Quality Assurance (QA) station, also called a relay station or PACS gateway, provides the capaiblity for the quality of images to be checked prior to their delivery on the PACS. It typically checks the completeness and correctness of the patient demographic information by comparing demographic information in the image header with demographic information retrieved from the RIS for the procedure. In addition, it might apply a shutter, if the image was collimated, or apply rotation if the portrait/landscape orientation was entered incorrectly. A QA station provides the opportunity to check the image quality, and, if not satisfactory, re-process the image. A QA station also offers a pass-through mode when it has been proven that the need for intervention is very infrequent. However, there are many installations where all images are routinely reviewed, sometimes by the technologist performing the exam, sometimes by a dedicated QA technologist.

Splitting or grouping studies is a feature often offered by these stations. Splitting might be required to divide images over different "folders." For example, a whole-body CT scan may be split to allow different specialists to look at different body parts. Another feature of a QA station is a capability to check whether or not images made it into the PACS. One should note that a QA station is just a "double-checker" before the information is sent to the PACS. Ideally, many of these features should be provided by the vendor at the modality.