50 Charlton Ave. East
Hamilton, Ontario L8N 4A6 Canada
Telephone: 905-522-1155, ext. 3476
Fax:  905-521-6166
 

The MRI Technologists


MRI Charge Technologist and Clerical staff
 

     St. Joseph’s Healthcare, Hamilton, is a Catholic teaching hospital in the city of Hamilton, in south-central Ontario.  Our growth in the MR field started in 1991 as a consortium formed by the five hospitals in Hamilton.  This was in order to bring MR services to the area.  A GE 1.5T 5X MR system was purchased and located off site and shared by all five hospitals.  St. Joseph’s share at that time was one 8-hour period per week and one evening shift.  This resulted in a waiting list of approxroximately 12 months.  Only basic scanning was done on this magnet at that time.  There were two MR radiologists and they took turns at the MRI site during St. Joseph’s time slots.

     We now operate a GE 1.5 T Twinspeed magnet with Excite platform and 10.0 software.  The center also has GE PACS system in place for greater efficiency. 

     The MRI Centre is open seven days a week, 07:00-23:30 hrs.  In the year and a half that the center has been operational, our hours have expanded from the beginning eight-hour days.

     We are a full service MR facility imaging all parts of the body.  We have set the standards for vascular imaging in the city and area.  Research is also a large part of our operations and we were the first in Hamilton to implement spectroscopy, and are the leaders in this field.  Of excellence is our Nephrology Program.  The MR Centre has contributed to this excellence by substituting an MR angiogram in place of the conventional angiogram that renal patients receive as part of their medical diagnostic testing.  This has proven to be less invasive to the patient with improved diagnostic results.  This has impressed and converted our surgeons to accept this new imaging with full approval. 

     Our team is proactive and progressive in all aspects of MR imaging.  There are great benefits to being a teaching site and we work closely with residents, MR students, radiography students, and both universities and colleges.  With the recent addition of the Brain and Body Institute at St. Joseph’s, research into functional imaging is becoming a reality with the 3.0 T magnet. 

     The radiologists are well specialized and cover all the areas in MR imaging.  Currently we have six MRI radiologists, with over 30 years of combined MR experience. 

     The technologists have all achieved Canadian MR certification, and our site is held in high regard for MR students applying for a clinical placement. 

     Our clerical team is highly praised for their dedication and organizational skills.  They allow the rest of the team to function at the caliber we do.  We are fortunate to receive the support and encouragement from our management team and hospital administration.  And of course, the attention and service we receive from our GE. Field Engineer is exemplary. 

The MRI Radiologists
 

     As a Canadian MR imaging facility, we are conscientious of the wait times for patient appointments.  We have managed to keep this wait time for an appointment down to within 4 months.  This has been possible with every team member's professionalism and dedication.  We provide a high quality of work efficiently.  We receive referrals from a large and loyal physicians group, who have come to count on our high standard of work.  Our patients have commented on the exceptional care they receive in the patient friendly atmosphere.  The MR Centre has sedation available to ease a patient’s anxiety and allow a patient to have the needed MR examination. 

     Our MR Centre serves as G.E.’s Canadian showsite and training facility.  We have worked closely with GE as a partner since the installation of the magnet.  The MRI Angiography award from Berlex has been one of our many endeavors to showcase our staff and knowledge.  We participated in the recent Toronto  SMRT conference with the submission of two posters. 

     As a group, we appreciate each other and the knowledge each one contributes to the team.  We are fortunate to work in a supportive learning environment for everyone to grow and be personally satisfied.  From this we are often referred to as an example of best practice in the MR field.