This latest-generation equipment, donated on the occasion of the cooperative’s centenary (2nd December 2019), replaces the machine donated 11 years ago. Renovation of premises, installation and personnel training have also been funded
Thanks to SACMI, the Imola Hospital Radiology Department now has a cutting-edge MRI scanner. This donation is the latest of many SACMI has made to Imola’s local health authority to raise the standard of diagnostic, assistance and treatment services.
As the Authority’s Director, Andrea Rossi, stated at the inaugural press conference for the new unit, SACMI has a long history of lending the local community its close support. All the MRI scanners at the Santa Maria della Scaletta Hospital have, in fact, been donated by the Cooperative: the first in 1996, the second in 2009 and now, to mark SACMI’s centenary, a brand new General Electric Signa Voyager G2, which will come on line in just a few days.
These donations, while essential, are not the only ones. Over the years SACMI has provided the Imola health authority with continuous support in various forms: a digital mammogram unit, advanced ultrasound scanners for the diagnosis of neoplasms and heart illness plus infrastructure improvements to operating theatres.
The RM Voyager G2 MRI scanner features innovative AIR Technology™ - a sort of flexible “blanket” which, using electromagnetic waves, can capture particularly accurate X-ray images of the patient - a solution that the international scientific community has called the “Best New Radiology Device of 2019”.
Key advantages of this latest machine include unmatched diagnostic precision, greater efficiency and productivity, and better patient comfort.
The optimal image resolution of the new MRI scanner can put even microscopic lesions in focus, sharpening diagnostic exactness. Special, highly versatile coils produce a sort of flexible "blanket" of electromagnetic waves that adapts to patients of any build or age.
Advanced software lets users adjust image contrast even after acquisition, when the actual patient scan has already been completed. All this ensures excellent performance across a wide range of clinical fields: neurological, musculoskeletal, abdominal, vascular, breast, cardiology, pediatric and all-body.
Low energy consumption (30% lower) makes the technology sustainable. Greater compactness saves on space and installation costs. The new machine also speeds up workflows and, together with greater flexibility and user-friendliness, maximizes productivity and extends the range of services.
Last but not least, patient comfort is enhanced thanks to halving of scan/apnea times and low noise levels (which even allow background music to be played). Moreover, a shorter and wider tunnel (70 cm vs 60 cm) means scans can be carried out on patients of larger build; it also reduces the need for sedation with children and, more generally, streamlines the overall examination process.
Thanks to the new machine donated by SACMI, explained Medical Director Andrea Neri, the quality and quantity of the diagnostics will increase further; together with another MRI scanner recently acquired by the Montecatone Institute - which will, in part, offer services to persons from other areas - local MRI capacity has received a significant boost. This could mean more than 12,000 locally performed scans, covering the 2500 scans that, on average, have to be outsourced to other local or regional health authorities each year. In other words, waiting lists will get shorter. This year’s gift from SACMI represents, then, a fundamental improvement to public health and the company’s commitment is deeply appreciated by the local health authority and the wider community.
The Mayor of Imola, Marco Panieri, in fact, thanked everyone at SACMI (President, Board of Directors and Cooperative Members) for the supportive, deep-rooted relationship with the local community that is part of every cooperative’s mission. Today, that relationship is, from both from a health and economic-social perspective, as important as it has ever been.
“Every year the Cooperative pours considerable resources into local health and education projects”, points out the President of SACMI Imola, Paolo Mongardi. The relationship with the local health authority in Imola is a long-term one that has seen SACMI donate equipment and infrastructure (from new operating rooms to ultrasound systems for the diagnosis of tumors and heart disease).
Approved on the occasion of the Cooperative's centenary, this donation “strengthens the company's special bond with its territory”, explains Mr. Mongardi. “Supporting hospitals and schools, helping people in difficulty, are in SACMI's DNA, in the solidarity that generates shared value for company and community alike”.
The installation of the new MRI scanner, begun on 30th October, was completed on 16th December following a general upgrading of the premises. At present the radiology team is undergoing training; shortly after the holidays the new equipment will be used to perform the first scans.
The donation - which covers the NMR unit, renovation work and health personnel training - is valued at approximately €900,000.