Agfa HealthCare: Yeovil District Hospital to replace third-party X-ray unit with DR 600 X-ray

Fully automated DR 600 offers faster patient turnaround and enhanced image quality, plus potential dose reduction

Mortsel, Belgium, 25-Jan-2016 — /EuropaWire/ — DR 600 multi-detector, high-productivity, high-throughput direct radiography (DR) system is replacing existing third-party system. – Choice of fixed, tethered and wireless detectors with Cesium Iodide (CsI) or Gadolinium Oxy-Sulphide (GOS) technology provides excellent image quality, while CsI also delivers potential for dose reduction. (*) – In 2014, Yeovil District Hospital implemented two Agfa HealthCare cost-effective DX-D 30C Retrofit solutions.

Agfa HealthCare announces today that Yeovil District Hospital has chosen to replace an existing third-party X-ray unit with the DR 600 X-ray room offering full automation, auto-positioning and auto-tracking. The hospital chose this top-performance solution based on its successful experience with Agfa HealthCare’s direct radiography (DR) Retrofit solutions, which include MUSICA image processing.

Speed, precision and comfort
The 345-bed Yeovil District Hospital provides a full range of clinical services, including general medicine, cardiology, general surgery, orthopedic surgery, trauma and pediatrics. Serving South Somerset, North and West Dorset and parts of Mendip each year, it handles around 20,000 emergency admissions, 3,500 elective admissions and 18,000 day cases.

In August 2014, the hospital implemented Agfa HealthCare’s cost-effective DX-D 30C Retrofit solution with MUSICA image processing in two X-ray rooms through the Fast Forward Program. This program provides healthcare facilities a path to DR, which offers a host of benefits including improved workflow and reduced examination time, immediate verification of patient positioning and image quality, improved accuracy of patient identification and the potential for dose reduction with Cesium Iodide (CsI) detectors.

In 2015, the hospital decided to replace an existing, third-party X-ray unit with the high-performance DR 600 X-ray room. Fully automated, the DR 600 streamlines workflow, increases throughput and enhances the experience of patients and operators alike, even in the busiest imaging environments. The ZeroForce Technology means manual movement of the tube head in all directions is quick and requires almost zero effort, while the EasyStitch technology minimizes distortions, for high-precision full leg full spine imaging. The MUSICA workstation’s workflow provides immediate previews that reduce time between exposures and thus deliver a higher rate of throughput.

Gold standard MUSICA image processing
A key decision factor for the hospital was the MUSICA image processing that comes with the Agfa HealthCare DR solutions. This intelligent and automated digital radiography image processing software offers consistently reliable, high-quality image visualization. Exam independent, MUSICA automatically analyzes the characteristics of each image and optimizes processing parameters – independent of user input and dose deviations. As a result, minimal re- or post-processing is required.

“After our positive experience last year with the Retrofit solutions, we were confident that the DR 600 would help us to meet the needs of our patients and our staff, for efficiency, quality and potential dose reduction,” says Fiona Rooke, Radiology Manager at Yeovil District Hospital. “The MUSICA image processing in particular was a strong point, providing excellent, consistent image quality. The solution supports us not only in providing our patients with quality care but also in keeping patient waiting times as low as possible: two key goals for our hospital.”

“This was the very first installation of the DR 600 in the UK, after its successful launch at UKRC. We are very pleased that Yeovil District Hospital has again chosen Agfa HealthCare to achieve its imaging objectives, which demonstrates that our solutions meet the real needs of hospitals,” says Grant Witheridge, General Manager of Agfa HealthCare UK. “From Retrofit to the fully automated DR 600, we strive to provide a full range of solutions that help all hospitals get the benefits of DR.”

(*) Testing with board-certified radiologists has determined that Cesium Bromide (CR) and Cesium Iodide (DR) detectors, when used with MUSICA image processing, can provide dose reductions of 50 to 60%, compared to traditional Barium Fluoro Bromide CR systems. Contact Agfa HealthCare for more details.

Paul Jackson
Marketing Manager UK, Agfa HealthCare
tel:+44 7918 708 843
paul.jackson@agfa.com

Marc De Fré
Global Marcom Director
tel:+32 3444 7319
marc.defre@agfa.com

Johan Jacobs
Corporate Press Relations Manager
Septestraat 27
2640 Mortsel – Belgium
tel:+32 (0)3 444 80 15
fax:+32 (0)3 444 50 05
johan.jacobs@agfa.com