Cary Medical Center in Caribou has taken a giant leap forward in imaging technology with the purchase of a new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) instrument from Philips. The Philips Achieva XR, 1.5 T will provide the hospital with some of the most powerful MRI technology in the State of Maine. The new imaging system will replace an older model that has been in service since September of 2001. The purchase and installation of the new MRI has come about thanks to a coordinated effort by the hospital's board of directors, medical staff, and administration and represents the largest capital equipment purchase in the history of the hospital.

Kris Doody, RN, and CEO at Cary said that patients and their physicians throughout Northern Maine will be the beneficiaries of the MRI and the service will bring Aroostook County into a new era of diagnostic capability that previously was only available outside the region.

"Over the years Cary has built a reputation for high quality patient care", said Doody who has been CEO at Cary since 2001. "With the addition of the new MRI combined with our recent purchase of a 64-slice CT Scanner, we are now offering some of the most advanced imaging technology north of Bangor and in many ways equal to the technology available anywhere in the State of Maine. What this means to our patients and their physicians is that they will be able to access the kind of advanced imaging and diagnostic capability that historically would require hundreds of miles of travel, time away from home and work, delays in scheduling, and all the other details of seeking service outside their local community. Now this level of technology is available here. We are so excited about the benefits this will bring to our patients".

Shawn Anderson, Chief Operating Officer at Cary Medical Center and Administrator for Imaging Services has managed the project to purchase and install the new MRI. Anderson pointed out that the hospital moved away from a previous, ‘business relationship' and went into the new service independently.

"Over the past seven years we have been in partnership with a vendor who helped us with the capital purchase of our original MRI", said Anderson. "This was a very positive relationship and helped us to establish the first ‘fixed based' MRI service in Northern Maine. However, it also meant sharing the revenue from the service with this external partner. Fortunately Cary is in a strong financial position and we were able to go into this new purchase independently which will mean that our investment in this new technology will pay off faster and we will be able to better manage our costs."

Given the difficult economic times and the multiple pressures on hospitals across the State, Cary's board of directors approached the purchase of the new MRI very deliberately. Peter Ashley, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Cary said that, in the end, it was just the right thing to do.

"Every member of our board recognizes the precious resources that were required to make this purchase", said Ashley who is completing his second and final year as board chairman. "The reality was that we had exhausted the capacity of our existing instrument and the time had come to replace it. We looked at multiple options, had our MRI team visit a number of centers around the country, heard presentations from several firms, and we trusted the recommendations of our administration and medical staff. We believe we made the right choice and we too are excited about the increased access to state of the art technology this instrument will provide."

The new Philips Achieva will not only bring a higher level of technology it will also make it possible for a number of new diagnostic exams to be performed at Cary Medical Center. Dr. Shawn Laferriere, Chief of Radiology at Cary and a member of the committee that sought out the new MRI, said that physicians in Aroostook County will be pleased with the new options it will provide.

"The image quality that is produced by this instrument is nothing short of incredible", said LaFerriere who is a native of Eagle Lake. "We will now be able to offer breast imaging studies, high-end muscular skeletal, and vascular imaging, and the instrument will greatly enhance our neurological imaging capacity."

In addition to the clinical advantages the new instrument will provide, the radiology department has created a patient centered environment in the new MRI suite. Leslie Randolph, Manager of Imaging and Rehabilitation Services at Cary said the goal is to provide a comfortable and convenient service.

"We know", said Randolph, "that an MRI experience can cause anxiety for patients. That is why the new Achieva instrument has a wider bore to reduce the feeling of claustrophobia. But in addition we have designed our unit with a décor that is warm and comfortable. We have established convenient parking and we have created high expectations for 5-star customer service. Our goal is to be the service of choice for MRI in Aroostook County and beyond."

A unique feature of the Achieva XR, 1.5T, is that it is scalable for future enhancement. It is the only instrument in the world that can be upgraded to a 3.0T system, the most advanced technology available, currently in use at large research and teaching hospitals, without replacing the magnet. This could mean that the instrument purchased by Cary today could be in service for more than a decade or longer.

In June of 2008 the hospital established a committee made up of administration, medical staff and radiology staff to visit MRI services around the country and to select the top programs for presentations. After months of review the committee decided on the Philips instrument. The installation of the new instrument is expected to be completed by March 27th and the unit will go fully operational on April 6. For more information on the MRI project visit carymedicalcenter.org.