20-year imaging equipment partnership renewed with CT upgrade project                   

The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, part of the Northern Care Alliance NHS Group, has bolstered a 20-year imaging equipment relationship with Canon Medical Systems UK with the introduction of three new CT systems across the Trust in as many months.

The Royal Oldham Hospital has taken delivery of its Aquilion ONE GENESIS Edition CT to futureproof demand pressure on its 24/7 trauma imaging service, particularly for cardiac. Fairfield General Hospital in Bury has a new Aquilion Prime SP CT to enhance frontline stroke imaging services, and Rochdale Infirmary has also received an Aquilion Prime SP CT to help alleviate scanning pressures. All hospitals had interim mobile CT units on site managed by Canon Medical Systems UK for continuity of patient scanning with no downtime during the installation project.

“For 20 years Canon Medical Systems, formerly Toshiba Medical Systems, has delivered great service to us so they were the obvious choice to go with to upgrade our CT systems. We also have six of its CT systems across the Trust so a standardised equipment strategy helps with giving staff operational continuity,” states Tamsin Hamilton, CT Service Manager at The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.

She continues, “Pressure on our imaging services keeps increasing, for example urgent cancer referral scans have gone up by 37% in the last year alone. To be fighting fit with new CT systems will help us meet future imaging demand and continue to provide the highest standard of care to our patient population.”

“Retaining a CT customer such as The Pennine Acute Hospital NHS Trust for over 20 years is a great accolade and testimony to our service team who frequently goes the extra mile in answering every question or concern. We look forward to working in partnership with the Trust into the future and supporting all its application and maintenance needs,” states Colin Murray, Account Manager at Canon Medical Systems UK.

Photo caption: The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has bolstered a 20-year imaging equipment relationship with Canon Medical Systems UK with the introduction of three new CT systems.

Pictured L to R: Leonardo Borges De Souza, Radiographer; Angela Keeney, Radiology Assistant; Colin Murray, Account Manager for Canon Medical Systems UK; Maju Choudhury, Radiographer; Stephen Green, Radiology Project Manager at Northern Care Alliance; James King, Project Manager for Canon Medical Systems UK; Paul Barker, Senior Directorate Manager for Radiology and Neurophysiology.

Pioneering cardiac screening vehicle & innovations in MSK, cardiology and orthopaedics push boundaries of sports diagnostic imaging at Wembley Stadium. The global sports medicine community recently converged on Wembley Stadium in London, the home of English football, to further its knowledge on football medicine and sports science during the 28th Isokinetic Medical Group Conference. Under the event title ‘Football Medicine Meets The Universe of Sport’, hundreds of delegates from global sporting organisations joined clinical luminaries and industry innovators, including Canon Medical, to share best practice and developments in a bid to improve elite athletic performance and health. In time, the learnings and innovations will also cascade into wider healthcare to improve outcomes for wider patient populations.

Pioneering cardiac screening vehicle & innovations in MSK, cardiology and orthopaedics push boundaries of sports diagnostic imaging at Wembley Stadium

The global sports medicine community recently converged on Wembley Stadium in London, the home of English football, to further its knowledge on football medicine and sports science during the 28th Isokinetic Medical Group Conference. Under the event title ‘Football Medicine Meets The Universe of Sport’, hundreds of delegates from global sporting organisations joined clinical luminaries and industry innovators, including Canon Medical, to share best practice and developments in a bid to improve elite athletic performance and health. In time, the learnings and innovations will also cascade into wider healthcare to improve outcomes for wider patient populations.

The conference programme included the sharing of knowledge from all sports including football, basketball, rugby, running, cricket and skiing and provided workshop sessions plus the latest clinical research findings about sports health, injury prevention, treatment and rehabilitation.


Canon Medical’s experts delivered hands-on practical sessions using diagnostic ultrasound for foot and ankle, and hip and thigh examinations; workshops on ‘emergence and post treatment development pathways for MRI knee’; demonstrations of the first ever cardiac screening mobile vehicle; and symposia on ‘recent developments in sports imaging and the impact in player management’.

The Canon Medical sports imaging symposia featured presentations from clinical experts and studies. These included ‘Cardiac monitoring to optimise athletic performance – innovative concept or a stretch too far?’ by Dr Guido Pieles, NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer in Paediatric Cardiology at the Bristol Heart Institute and Bristol Congenital Heart Centre in UK; ‘Current concepts on imaging of Intraarticular hip injuries’ by Dr Luis Cerezal, Chief Radiologist at Clínica Coloma in Spain; and ‘Decision making in sports medicine’ by Dr Lluís Til, First team Physician at FC Barcelona, Spain.

“Understanding how the body works under sporting pressure and identifying wear and tear before it becomes an injury is incredibly important in sports medicine, to help teams gain competitive advantage and protect the value of sports investments,” states Candy Wasserman, Global Head of Advertising & Promotions at Canon Medical Systems Corporation. “We have been able to share our knowledge on how innovative imaging systems can pre-empt conditions, assist with treatment planning, and guide rehabilitation or training programmes.”

For over 25 years, Canon Medical has been developing equipment and applications for MSK, Cardiology and sports medicine. Since 2012, Canon Medical has been the ‘Official Medical Systems Partner’ of Manchester United Football Club, which includes a state-of-the-art imaging centre at the Old Trafford UK training ground. Other premier football partnerships include FC Barcelona and Real Madrid C.F. Many imaging systems are also used at a local and national level in wider sporting organisations such as tennis, basketball, rugby and cycling.

Photo caption: Dr Luis Cerezal Chief Radiologist at Clínica Coloma delivered a presentation at Isokinetic Medical Group Conference 2019.

Imaging procedures at National Spinal Injuries Centre, 24 hour A&E, cancer care, cardiac & stroke unit to be enhanced & future-proofed at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust has placed an order for two Vantage Orian 1.5T MRI scanners from Canon Medical Systems UK to future-proof its imaging services. This represents the first UK orders of the premier MRI system. The two MRIs will be installed into Wycombe Hospital and Stoke Mandeville Hospital to provide patients with the latest techniques for cancer, stroke, heart, spine and wider frontline imaging requirements. The purchase of the scanners will be funded by Buckinghamshire based charity ‘Scannappeal’.

Wycombe Hospital will be first to receive the new scanner later this year to replace an ageing system and support its busy district general imaging needs such as stroke and MSK research work. The Vantage Orian MRI will facilitate shorter patient scan times and thus reduce appointment times for some examinations and enhance patient experience. This will help to drive improved throughput and meet the 13% year-on-year increase in demand at the Trust for MRI examinations.

Stoke Mandeville Hospital, which includes the internationally recognised National Spinal Injuries Centre and busy 24 hour A&E department, will take delivery of its Vantage Orian MRI in 2020. The benefits of high productivity, patient comfort and greater clinical confidence will boost the standard of care delivered to patients, increase capacity and enable new research projects to be undertaken.

Deborah King, Lead Radiographer MRI at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust states, “We have great CT support service from Canon Medical Systems UK so they were a natural choice to help us modernise our MRI facilities. With 22,000 MRI scans each year, and growing by double digits annually, we needed to replace old systems and get ourselves fighting fit to support patients into the future. Canon Medical Systems listened closely to our needs and supported us on our brief.”

Scannappeal Chairman, William Baxter CBE states, “Scannappeal has been proudly supporting and working with communities across Buckinghamshire since 1987 and this is the biggest appeal that we have run in our history. It is a tremendous commitment, but the new Bucks MRI Appeal provides a wonderful opportunity for the local community to work with us to ensure we have the best possible equipment available at our hospitals.”

“It’s great that the UK’s first orders of the Vantage Orian MRI will be going to hospitals that are so focused on improving the clinical services to the patients they serve,” states Vanessa Ellis, MR Modality Manager at Canon Medical Systems. “From the amazing Scannappeal charity, the committed staff in the departments and the enthusiastic research Radiologists, everyone is determined to make a difference, which we will support in partnership with all of them.”

Photo caption: The UK’s first Vantage Orian 1.5T MRI scanners from Canon Medical Systems have been ordered by Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust.

Service partnership with Imagex Medical will deliver productivity benefits to hospital radiology, EBME & procurement departments

A new multi-vendor service partnership has been announced into the UK health marketplace by equipment manufacturer Canon Medical Systems UK and specialist, independent ultrasound service provider, Imagex Medical. The unique offering will provide cost, operational and administrative benefits to time pressured NHS and independent hospitals by streamlining productivity in the way maintenance and repairs are carried out on frontline diagnostic ultrasound imaging systems.

The offering will change the way ultrasound imaging servicing can be handled. Instead of 2-4 different Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) visiting hospital departments at different times to service systems or undertake repairs, one specialist engineer trained across many different OEM systems can undertake all the equipment service needs. This delivers many time, administrative and cost savings for EBME (Electro-Biomedical Engineering) and health estates & facilities departments managing the maintenance of systems.

It will also minimise impact on the associated clinical departments of radiology, obstetrics and cardiology that experience equipment downtime whilst planned or unexpected ultrasound repairs are undertaken. At the same time, back office administrative burdens of multiple vendor reviews, contracts and invoices generated by procurement or finance teams will be reduced by simplifying equipment maintenance to one specialist organisation.

“Productivity and efficiency are ongoing mantras in healthcare as we enter 2019, especially in light of the NHS’ new long-term plan. As an equipment manufacturer we understand how important it is for our customers to receive high quality servicing quickly for diagnostic ultrasound systems, to not only maximise the life and uptime of the imaging system, but also to meet operational targets and patient needs. By entering into this partnership with Imagex Medical we can broaden our specialist service offerings to our installed base and reassure them that we’re working in partnership to meet the challenges of today’s healthcare industry head on,” states Paul Parsons, Director Service & Technical Support at Canon Medical Systems UK. “One quote, one contract and a single point of contact for all ultrasound equipment concerns will be beneficial for many healthcare providers.”

Jeff Norrie, Chief Technician, Medical Engineering Department at Good Hope Hospital, part of University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust states, “We have 45 ultrasound systems at Good Hope Hospital serving a patient catchment population of 450,000. Smooth maintenance and servicing is essential to have good service audit trails and ensure equipment health is kept at an optimum level to meet increasing clinical demands.”

Jim Lowbridge, Commercial Director at Imagex Medical states, “We’re excited to be entering into this multi-vendor partnership with Canon Medical Systems UK and supporting the UK healthcare marketplace with an alternative to OEM service support or managed equipment providers. As an independent specialist in ultrasound service support we focus on keeping equipment running to meet all clinical and operational needs.”

 Photo caption: A new multi-vendor service partnership has been announced into the UK health marketplace by equipment manufacturer Canon Medical Systems UK and specialist, independent ultrasound service provider, Imagex Medical.

Dr. Gray’s Hospital, Elgin, part of NHS Grampian recently replaced its Aquilion 64 with a state-of-the-art Aquilion Prime SP 160 CT scanner from Canon Medical Systems

Mark Shannon, Radiography Manager, comments, “Having for many years valued the quality of service and support from Canon for various modalities, it was clear to the team at Dr. Gray’s that the Canon CT range was going to be considered for our replacement scanner. In the ten years since our last scanner was installed, the progress in software development, within the industry in general, has added considerable options to access high-end functionality to all modalities, not just CT. This is fantastic news for patients and clinicians alike as it reduces dose, improves acquisition times and yields more information.”

Dr. Gray’s is a District General Hospital and only has a single CT scanner. Mark explains, “During any installation we have to ensure a cross-sectional imaging service is available at all times. We also have to remain flexible for the needs of elective and unplanned exams, and to ensure the safety and well-being of patients and staff.” Instead of the ‘traditional’ van in a car park solution Canon offered to install an interim service within the department. Mark continues, “This provided us with a range of exams to maintain the service and allowed the workflow within the safe environment of the department to be maintained. Following the installation of our replacement scanner, Canon’s Aquilion Prime SP, the response from patients, staff and referrers has been highly positive. The radiography team was delighted with the transition from old to new. Not only does the new software platform provide ease and familiarity to acquisition, but applying additional functions was an intuitive process. On a practical level, the larger bore and lateral couch movement contribute to a less stressful and physically demanding day, as well as allowing patients to feel more relaxed. Radiologists appreciate the additional software available within the package, and particularly value the thin-client post-processing capability afforded with the introduction of Vitrea-Extend. These additional packages are all very intuitive to learn, but nonetheless, delivered with minimal fuss and well supported by an excellent applications specialist”.  

In conclusion, Mark says, “Hardware and software aside, the most positive impact of this installation has been the ease with which it happened. From initial discussion to completion of the build, Canon and the company’s partners have been excellent, providing regular updates and advice. We are now better prepared to meet the challenges that face us!”

The Aquilion Prime SP sets new standards of image quality, whilst providing the lowest possible dose for every patient. Built with premium technology migrated straight from the company’s high-end CT, it facilitates the handling of all patients from paediatric to bariatric, including the most challenging cases, while providing staff with a fast and efficient solution to make their work easier.

Photo caption: Left to right; Deborah Searle, Radiographer; Eilidh Jackson, Charge Nurse; Dr. Struan Wilkie, Consultant Radiologist; Lyndsay Smith, Radiographer; Mark Shannon , Radiography Manager; Nicola Goodman, Anne Wood, Rachael Brown, Catherine Dyer, Arlene More, Radiographers and Iain Gray, Account Manager, Canon Medical Systems

Multi-modality innovations and relocatable imaging facilities on display

In tune with this year’s UK Imaging and Oncology Congress (UKIO) ‘Personalise & Humanise’ theme, Canon Medical Systems UK will be on stand 2, 10-12 June in Liverpool, to demonstrate the company’s #madeforlife ethics and ethos, alongside its equipment innovations and service offerings. This includes a new interventional imaging product launch, CT, MRI and ultrasound equipment showcases, plus a relocatable modality imaging unit.

A new family of interventional imaging systems will be presented to UKIO delegates by Canon Medical Systems UK during the event. The Alphenix range was first previewed at ECR, boasting great clarity and precision for interventional radiology and cardiology, plus a unique dose tracking technology to help operators managed patient procedural dose. Canon Medical Systems will also be presenting the exceptional features of Hi-Def Detector technology (High-Definition Flat Panel Detector) available on the Alphenix Biplane and Alphenix Core+. Hi-Def systems are designed to help clinicians see fine details during procedures such as stent positioning and stent apposition, wire and catheter navigation through the stent struts, and observation of coil deployment.

The market leading CT Aquilion ONE GENESIS Edition will feature on the Canon Medical Systems UK stand alongside the Vantage Orian Premium 1.5T and Aplio iSeries ultrasound products. Information on healthcare IT solutions from Canon Medical Systems including the Vitrea® range of modular, multi-modality and multi-vendor advanced visualisation applications will also be available. This will include Global Illumination, an alternative 3D rendering technique to provide photorealistic anatomy images for communication and education needs between peers, specialists and patients; Bayesian CT Brain Perfusion for assessing in 4D cerebral blood flow and perfusion disturbances within the brain; and Olea MRI post-processing tools. Underpinning all product and solution showcases will be information on the Canon Medical Systems’ ‘Applications for Life’ programmes and wide range of highly rated education and training resources.

Outside the UKIO exhibition building, a relocatable imaging unit part of a fleet managed by Canon Medical Systems UK will be positioned for delegates to tour. The versatility of the multi-modality units can help imaging departments flex up service capacity during screening projects, winter pressures, or ensure continuity of service during building works or scheduled maintenance.

Additionally, the British Institute of Radiology / Canon Memorial Lecture will take place at UKIO on Monday 10 June at 12.45 given by Professor Mathias Prokop, Head of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Radboud University in the Netherlands, titled, ‘advanced computer analysis in oncologic imaging: a necessity or a hype?’. Canon Medical Systems UK sponsors the BIR award which recognises values, skills and contributions in medical imaging.

“We’re looking forward to being part of the inaugural UK Imaging and Oncology Congress, the largest multidisciplinary imaging and oncology conference in the UK,” states Maiko Davison, Head of Marketing and Presales Operations at Canon Medical Systems UK. “Our specialist team of product and service representatives are the same people that delivered service excellence under our former company name Toshiba Medical Systems. We will all be on hand to discuss the needs of UK healthcare institutions and detail how our multi-modality range of systems and service can support radiologists, radiographers, sonographers and management teams into the future.”

Photo caption: A new family of Alphenix interventional imaging system for the UK marketplace will be launched by Canon Medical Systems at UKIO 2019.