Nova Scotia deploys a ‘moveable’ MRI scanner

HALIFAX – Nova Scotia is now using a “relocatable” MRI to increase the number of scans available to patients. The system is being supplied by Siemens Healthineers and was scheduled to be imaging patients by the end of July.

Fully funded by the QEII Foundation, the $4 million MRI will initially be sited at the Bayers Lake Community Outpatient Centre, a strategic location chosen in the health zone with the greatest waitlist.

The container-like structure will be available to patients, allowing for scans to take place with very little infrastructure costs or limitations. The compact design allows for it to be placed on a truck to be taken to different locations.

“You can pick this up, put it on the back of a flatbed and move it to a different part of the province to meet community needs, wherever they may be,” said Dr. James Clarke, chief of diagnostic imaging for Nova Scotia Health.

The tech could help scan an extra 4,800 patients a year at a time when the province has more than 15,000 patients on the waiting list. Province-wide, Nova Scotia does around 40,000 MRIs a year.

The unit itself is said to be leading-edge, providing very fast scans. For example, some scans that are currently taking 20 minutes will only take 12 minutes in the relocatable MRI.

Another unique approach to the delivery of the care within the relocatable MRI includes the option for remote scanning support, which allows for expert QEII technologists to support the scans from afar.

The patient will always be with a trained technologist in the relocatable MRI, but the remote scanning support model allows that staff member to tap into additional expertise when needed.

“This is an exciting, innovative project that exemplifies the QEII Foundation’s passion to fund transformative solutions to healthcare challenges,” said Susan Mullin, president and CEO of the QEII Foundation. “Donors want to be part of the solution and are inspired by ideas that not only advance care but are innovative in approach. Our partners at Nova Scotia Health, Varian, and Siemens are thought leaders in this space and we are thrilled to be bringing a first in Atlantic Canada solution to patients who need it most.”