Hospital gets new CT scanner to cut treatment time

The new scanner will provide detailed imaging

More patients will be able to be scanned quicker, resulting in shorter waits, thanks to a new CT scanner, hospital bosses have said.

Yeovil Hospital in Somerset got the CT scanner for its radiology department to produce high resolution cross-sectional images across many parts of the body.

The hospital, which is run by Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said it will give doctors access to the important information they need to make a medical diagnosis.

Katie Howells, interim site lead for radiology, added: “Clinicians will be able to access their patients' scans quicker, with the best quality imaging, which is something we're always striving for, as it gives us the best chance of a correct diagnosis."

She said that the hospital's previous CT scanner had been "a workhorse over the years, but it was clear that it was getting old as the time to process scans was becoming longer".

Clinicians will be able to see high-quality results much quicker

Computerised tomography (CT) scanners are used on all different types of patients, including patients who have come through the hospital’s emergency department, such as trauma patients or those who have had a stroke.

Ms Howells said they had lost some workflow flexibility due to the age of the previous scanner.

“We use our CT scanners to image very unwell patients from our critical care unit and trauma patients, as well as those with suspected strokes or brain haemorrhages, so it was crucial that we had a scanner that was able to cope with this demand," she said.

“When we have less flexibility, it can have a knock on effect on the time patients need to wait for a scan, which is far from ideal.

“We mitigated against that by not doing all types of examinations in the older CT scanner, but this new scanner gives us that extra flexibility, meaning we have a much-improved workflow, so we can actively manage our patients."