Devon Diagnostic Centre's new ultrasound equipment helps cut waiting times

The DDC carries out CT, MRI, plain Film X-ray, ultrasound or fluoroscopy services

Three times as many patients have been seen at Devon Diagnostic Centre (DDC) compared to last year thanks to new state-of-the-art ultrasound equipment.

The centre, based at NHS Nightingale Hospital Exeter, now has four outpatient scanning suites installed with the latest ultrasound machines.

Jane Baker, principal sonographer at the nightingale, said patients were "already seeing the difference".

It followed funding from the National Accelerator Systems Programme.

The equipment, from Canon Medical Systems UK, was helping to reduce the local NHS patient waiting list from six weeks to less than two weeks, the DDC said.

It said the increased capacity of the ultrasound department had meant the centre had been able to serve three times as many patients this year compared to last year.

Ms Baker said there were now "reduced times" between a GP referral and getting an appointment at the centre.

'Faster examinations'

"With this new equipment, we are already seeing faster examinations and improved productivity within the team," she said.

"With improved image quality, diagnostic confidence has increased greatly across the team, leading to more efficient diagnoses and patients being seen at a much faster rate."

The new equipment provides a high level of detail for precision scanning, particularly for gynaecological and musculoskeletal examinations, the DDC says.

The machines can provide high-quality vascular visualisation, which advances diagnostic confidence when evaluating lesions, cysts and tumours, improving patient outcomes and experience, a spokesperson added.