The first of three new MRI units in the Northern Health region is now serving patients in Prince George. The new MRI at UHNBC (pictured above) replaces the facility’s 14-year old unit, with significantly upgraded technology. Two more MRI installation projects are underway at other NH facilities: Mills Memorial Hospital in Terrace, and Fort St. John Hospital & Health Centre. These new MRI units, tripling the number of MRI’s in the Northern Health region, go into service this summer and fall. They will significantly improve access and wait times, and bring services closer to home for residents across the region.
Diagnostic imaging staff from the northeast and northwest received additional training to support the new MRIs in Terrace and Fort St. John, which are each slated to do two thousand scans in their first year of operation. UHNBC is expected to increase to seven thousand MRIs, up from the current six thousand scans performed each year. MRI’s are a tool used by physicians and specialists to support in making a diagnosis.