A crane and a work crew were on the scene at Butler Memorial Hospital Thursday to help replace some heavy equipment.
Director of Radiology Services Tom Raraigh told our newsroom “Today was the de-installation of the old MRI system. We got it ready for transport. It weighs 14,000 pounds, much too large and too heavy to go through the building so they brought in a big crane and we lifted it out of the second floor of the Butler Memorial Hospital.”
The MRI machine was from 2007 but was already dated and needed to be traded back to the vendor Siemens Medical.
According to Raraigh, that area will now be renovated to prepare for the installation of the new patient-friendly MRI unit in May.
“So we have a newer magnet coming in that has a larger bore, or opening. The opening on the previous magnet was 60 centimeters and the new magnet is a 70 centimeter bore which helps with patients that are claustrophobic.”
The new unit will have capability for Cardiac and Advanced Neuro imaging which will support the growing BHS heart and neurosurgery programs. A mobile MRI system will be utilized until the new system is up and running so that patients will continue to receive the same high quality care at Butler Memorial Hospital.
Written by Ryan Saeler
