Ultrasound system an upgrade for current, future services

    Bring up ultrasound, and many people’s minds jump straight to obstetrics. Mention it in the Melissa Memorial Hospital radiology department, and at the moment, employees will probably think of the hospital’s new system and all it has to offer.
    Jamie Dikeman, a multimodality technologist in the department, said the new ultrasound system is top-of-the-line. To give an idea of the upgrade, Dikeman explained that the decade-old system that was replaced still used thermal printouts that expectant parents could take home with them. With the new system, MMH can offer 4D ultrasounds, which are basically 3D images in real time, viewed like a video. Ultrasound results can now be taken home by patients on a CD or a USB flash drive.
    In addition to 4D capabilities, the new system has several probes, allows much more capabilities for exams and has better resolution. Just as with home computers, Dikeman said, ultrasound technology is constantly changing and upgrades are occasionally needed to stay up to date.
    Of course, there’s much more to ultrasound than just looking at fetuses. Dikeman pointed out that ultrasound, which is simply imaging with sound waves, can be used to look at most soft tissue. The new machine even has the capability to do vascular studies.
    MMH currently offers echo/vascular services once a week through a contracted mobile provider. While it’s a valuable service, when someone comes in with chest pain or swelling and redness in their leg that could indicate a blood clot, those are somewhat emergent. If an echo/vascular tech isn’t available, those patients often need to be transferred to another facility.
    Now that the hospital has the technology on-site, its future may eventually include its own echo/vascular tech and the ability to address such ultrasound needs as they arise.
    As usual, MMH continues to look for better ways to serve its patients and offer care that’s close to home. As Dikeman said, the new system means that the hospital can “improve abilities for the future, not just for today.”