Going forward from this past weekend, Albany and Clinton County residents in need of having an Magnetic Resonance Image (MRI) completed, will be able to obtain one of the highest resolution scans available.

According to Laura Belcher, Administrator at The Medical Center at Albany, the facility completed installation of new technology over this past weekend that combined the advancements in MR with the sophisticated engineering of a 1.5T wide bore system.

This new scanner, the SIGNA™ Voyager from GE Healthcare, will provide a whole new level of patient comfort with minimized scan times and improved image quality.

MRI services are currently provided at Med Center MRI located off of the hospital campus at 254 Burkesville Road.

The service will be moved on site to The Medical Center at Albany with an upgrade to a 1.5T scanner, the largest in the area.

Med Center MRI currently uses a .3T scanner. The difference is the strength of the magnet. The higher magnet strength of the 1.5T improves image quality with higher detail.

The new scanner also features a wide bore which refers to the open space in the middle of the scanner.

The benefits associated with a wide bore includes increased image quality and increased patient comfort as compared to a narrow bore.

“This enhancement to our MRI service is just another example of The Medical Center at Albany’s commitment to providing residents of Clinton and surrounding counties with essential diagnostic imaging technology close to home,” said Belcher. “Compared to previous technology, this new MRI produces sharper, detailed images that can help physicians make quicker and better diagnoses for patients.”

The hospital also offers bone density, digital mammography, CT, radiology, nuclear medicine, ultrasound and echocardiography.

MRI is a non-invasive test used to diagnose disease and injury and monitor treatment of medical conditions in organs, tissues and the skeletal system.

With the new scanner, The Medical Center at Albany will now have the ability to perform MRI exams with contrast. During this type of scan, contrast dye is injected into the patient to enhance the detail of the images for certain conditions.

A physician order is required for an MRI. Once a physician has ordered the test, either the patient or the physician’s office can call 606-387-6421 to schedule the test.