IT SOUNDS like a prop from a sci-fi movie, but it’s reality and it’s right here, at a hospital near you. The fantastic state-of-the-art scanner will deliver much higher quality images in a fraction of the time usually taken, and generate a much lower dose of radiation.
Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust (SWBH) has become one of the first Trusts in the country to install this scanning equipment, which promises to cut waiting times whilst improving patient safety.
Louise Harrison, superintendent radiographer at SWBH, explained: “This machine is a game changer. It enables us to reduce the time needed for each scan by half. We no longer need to move the scanning equipment to examine patients since the new machine can automatically move around to do the job. It also generates pictures in a second and allows us to digitally share images with clinicians simultaneously, so patients can be diagnosed right away.
“One of the great features of this machine is that it reduces the dose of radiation, so it’s safer for our patients without compromising the quality of the pictures. In fact, the pictures are much clearer than before. This scanner really gives us more information in less radiation.”
Jonathan Walters, Group Director of Operations Pathology and Imaging at SWBH, added: “The scanner is part of the managed equipment service contract that the Trust signed with Siemens last year.
“Our plan is to refurbish all the imaging equipment across the Trust over the next few years to prepare for the coming of the new Midland Met hospital.
“In the next three months, we plan to install new scanners at the Birmingham Treatment Centre and Neptune Health Park.”
A video of how the scanner works can be watched here: