ROCHESTER, N.Y. — University of Rochester Medicine has found a new way to update old imaging equipment that saves money and cuts down on waste.
Typically, MRI machines are replaced about every 10 years, but UR Medicine is now partnering with GE Health Care to strip down each machine to the 4,000-pound magnet inside and replace all the technology surrounding it with up-to-date systems.
This is a new option that did not exist 10 years ago. “Why not strip and rebuild, because you’re essentially paying half and getting a brand-new scanner that is identical to what you would have gotten if you brought a brand new one,” explains Dr. Eric Weinberg, the Vice Chair of the Department of Imaging Sciences.
That is not the only benefit — you would need to rip out a wall to get an old machine out of the building, then you would have to break it into pieces to dispose of it. “You’re also saving all kinds of CO2 production, this is a very sustainable project, we’re not throwing something out into a landfill,” says Dr. Weinberg.
So, it is cheaper for the health system and better for the environment, but what’s in it for the patients?
The refurbished MRIs are 10 centimeters wider than the older models. “That’s a huge advantage for patients because it’s not as claustrophobic, we can also put larger patients in but also these scanners are much more powerful in terms of what we call radiance. That allows us to scan faster and at higher resolution,” Dr. Weinberg says.
The refurbished machines also use new AI technology that helps makes the scans clearer to read.
So, a shorter time in the machine that produces a better, clearer picture of what might be going on in your body — and you might not have to wait as long to get an appointment. “I used to look at 16 patients a day on each of our 4 scanners, now we’re looking at 22 patients a day, maybe sometimes 24,” says Stewart Go, the lead MRI technologist.
The University of Rochester Medicine has rebuilt 5 of its MRIs in this way and is working on its 6th.
UR Medicine partners with GE HealthCare to refurbish imaging equipment, keeping 4,000-pound magnets out of landfills WHEC.com.
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