Canon’s offshore customers still benefit from complete support

The ability to support diagnostic imaging systems remotely has been put to the test this year, reports Canon Medical Systems UK, as the pandemic limits visits to hospitals from its representatives. For hospital locations away from the UK mainland, receiving fewer visits from representatives of imaging equipment manufacturers has been a fact of life for a long time. For example, Canon Medical has many customers in locations such as the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands.

King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in Stanley, Falkland Islands, is located more than 8,000 miles from the UK. It is a British territory and has a reciprocal agreement with the NHS. It is the only medical, dental and community health service facility serving the nearly 4,000 inhabitants, a number that potentially triples in the summer when cruise ships visit.

“Ultrasound is our frontline diagnostic tool and we use it as much as x-ray,” explained senior radiographer Nina Aldridge. “We have had our two Xario ultrasound systems from Canon Medical for many years and are reliant on them for all general imaging work. The Xario ultrasound is a battery powered unit that gives us a great mobile to take to a patient on the ward or theatre.

“We are a very resilient and forward-thinking nation being in a remote location with only a once-a-month supply boat, so we are used to not expecting things immediately. But we have instant responses whenever we need them from the Canon Medical team and this is very reassuring to keep our ultrasound imaging service running smoothly and ensuring the highest possible standard of care to our patients.”

Canon Medical Systems UK regional ultrasound manager Tim Palarm added: “2020 has taught us all that even when we have to be physically apart, we can still communicate with and support our customers virtually using the technologies available. For example, our InnerVision remote service and application support can action software updates or repairs by a Canon service engineer without the need to visit the location. It can facilitate screen sharing to talk clinicians through any training or education topics to broaden their knowledge of the system, optimise image quality and, of course, maximise potential when in clinical use with patients.”

Picture: King Edward VII Memorial Hospital is 8,000 miles away from the UK.

Published on page 12 of the February 2021 issue of RAD Magazine.