New MRI machines to cut patient wait times at Waterloo region hospitals
More MRI machines means hospitals can ramp up more services and cut down on patient wait time
People in Waterloo region will have more access to MRI services as new machines are slated to come to regional hospitals.
Grand River Hospital will get a new MRI machine in the new year and the province announced funding to support the operation of a machine at St. Mary's General Hospital in Kitchener, Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Mike Harris announced Tuesday.
The announcement comes as local hospitals have seen an increase demand for MRI services over the past decade, Harris said.
"Countless individuals have had to travel to London, Hamilton or Toronto to get their diagnostic tests met," he said during the announcement.
Ron Gagnon, president and CEO of Grand River Hospital said the hospital conducts more than 17,000 MRI scans annually and its current machine needs to be replaced.
He said an earlier funding announcement helped with the replacement of that machine, which is scheduled to happen in January 2022.
A second machine, scheduled to be operational by summer 2022, means the hospital will be able to "get up to speed" and significantly reduce wait times for patients.
"With the implementation of a second MRI at Grand River, we'll be able to cut our wait times from seven months to less than 90 days," Gagnon said.
First MRI machine at St. Mary's General
For Marion Thomson Howell, chair of St. Mary's General Hospital, having an MRI machine at the hospital will mean patients will be able to access those services on site for the first time.
"[When] we have patients at St. Mary's that require MRI scans, we have to transport them usually to Grand River, which is not the best patient care," she said. "Now we'll be able to serve them right in our own walls."
The announcement is part of a $30 million investment by the province to add new MRI machines to hospitals across the province, Harris said.