Benenden Hospital upgrades with multi-purpose DR and x-ray rooms

Benenden Hospital in Kent has received DR 800 and DR 600 DR systems from Agfa. Since the installation, the x-ray rooms have enabled the hospital to reduce patient dose.

Benenden Hospital offers a comprehensive range of medical, surgical and diagnostic services and its imaging department performs more than 17,000 examinations a year.

To replace its existing fluoroscopy system, the hospital began searching for a multi-purpose solution that could handle a full range of fluoroscopy and general radiography examinations. To maximise return on investment, the hospital wanted a solution that could function as a full x-ray room, without the addition of a supplementary x-ray tube. A challenging room build and equipment layout required flexibility from the solution and the supplier. The equipment also needed to be easy to use and quick to learn.

After site visits throughout the UK, Benenden Hospital chose Agfa’s multi-purpose DR 800 and, at the same time, decided to replace its ageing x-ray equipment with a high performance DR 600 room.

The DR 800 offers a full range of radiography and fluoroscopy examinations without the need for additional overhead tubes or separate wall stands. The multi-purpose imaging system includes Dynamic Musica image processing software for general radio-graphy and moving images. The ceiling-suspended DR 600 delivers high productivity and features to streamline workflow, increase throughput and enhance the experience of patients and operators alike. ZeroForce Technology enables quick, almost ‘zero effort’ manual movement of the tube head in all directions.

“Paramount within the criteria of purchase was that we would be able to obtain optimum images using minimum dose,” said lead superintendent radiographer Tina Marshall. “Thus far, both units have provided us with good image quality and enabled us to reduce patient dose. In addition, the equipment and software had to be user-friendly and easy to learn, and Agfa’s solutions ticked all the boxes. This equipment is a pleasure to work with.

“We already had experience working with Agfa and we found the service to be prompt and professional. Installation was quick and efficient and we finished a week ahead of schedule.”

Picture: Senior radiographer June Bell, Agfa applications specialist William Cunningham, senior radiographer Ann Goode, lead superintendant radiographer Tina Marshall, senior radiographer Nicola Osman and Agfa senior key account manager Kevin McQuillan.

Published on page 18 of the May 2019 issue of RAD Magazine.