Submitted

The April 12 grand opening of Rooks County Health Center’s (RCH) new MRI & Nuclear Medicine Suite will officially mark the completion of the first phase of the hospital’s expansion efforts. The new MRI & Nuclear Medicine Suite hosts a Toshiba Vantage Titan MRI with stress reduction features and an on-site gamma camera for Nuclear Medicine scans. The public is invited to attend the grand opening, 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 12 at Rooks County Health Center, 1210 N. Washington Street in Plainville.

“RCH is excited to offer these services to our patients five days a week while eliminating the need to travel great distances for the scans. This makes scheduling easier and more efficient, saving time and money for our patients,” stated Karen Harris, RCH Director of Digital Imaging.

The MRI, with its extra large bore, is the only one of its kind in Kansas or Missouri. The extra room accommodates patients up to 440 pounds and reduces stress for those with claustrophobic tendencies. In addition, the patient controls the environment from the color of the room to watching a video with noise reduction headphones. Being calmer throughout the procedure aids in fewer rescans. Results are provided within 24 hours.

Ray House, MD, Diagnostic Radiologist and President of United Radiology Group in Salina, is one of the physicians that reads MRI scans for RCH. Commenting on the quality and clarity of the images from the new MRI, Dr. House stated, “I would compare the images from RCH favorably to any facility in the country for a 1.5 magnet.  These images are spectacular! We at United Radiology read images from many different types and models of MRI units. The images from the new MRI at RCH would compete with the best images in the country.”

Nuclear Medicine completes RCH’s new state-of-the-art imaging suite. Nuclear Medicine is vital because it provides information about the function of an organ as well as its structure enabling the detection of abnormalities very early in the progress of disease long before medical symptoms become apparent. A tracer solution is administered to the patient and temporarily deposits in the organ, tissue or bones to be evaluated. The gamma camera then detects the trace solution to form images that provide data and information that can determine the presence of disease based on biological changes, rather than changes in anatomy.

In summing up the importance of RCH’s new MRI & Nuclear Medicine Suite for health care in the region, Dr. House offered, “it is very unique that a small rural hospital would have such state-of-the-art equipment in the radiology department. Your community is very lucky because they can have advanced exams performed locally without having to travel outside the county.”

The new imaging equipment passed inspections and has been certified since February, increasingly adding to the number of scanned patients daily.

“We’ve heard wonderful comments from the patients so far,” reflected Harris. “One, who self-identified as being extremely claustrophobic before the scan, declared that she almost fell asleep during the exam she was so relaxed by the environment.”

For more information on the grand opening or RCH’s new MRI & Nuclear Medicine Suite visit RooksCountyHealthCenter.com or call (785) 434-4553.