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Sanitat launches seven digital radiology rooms with vision and artificial intelligence to personalise tests for patients

 

• Sanitat launches seven digital radiology rooms with vision and artificial intelligence to personalise tests for patients
• Doctor Balmis in Alicante is the first hospital in Spain to have a radiology room with these characteristics 
• A camera detects the size and volume of the patient and on the basis of this recommends the necessary dose of radiation
• Marciano Gómez explains that, in general terms, the patient's radiation is halved
• The new heliport of the Doctor Balmis Hospital goes into operation 

 

The Ministry of Health has invested more than 1.5 million euros in the installation of ceiling equipment in seven radiology rooms of different hospitals in the Valencian Community, which incorporates vision and artificial intelligence for the personalisation of radiographs to patients.

The main innovation that this technology brings is that it has a camera with artificial intelligence algorithms and a detector for body analysis, which detects the size and volume of the patient. In this way, the area that is illuminated with the X-ray beam on which the test is carried out is defined and the radiation is optimised.

 

Precisely, the Minister of Health, Marciano Gómez, visited today, together with the manager of the Department of Health Alicante-General Hospital, Francisco Soriano, the first digital radiology room of these characteristics that was launched in Spain, and which is installed at Doctor Balmis Hospital. The councilor explained that the technology it has "allows to calculate the optimal parameters for a given patient and a specific study and, on the basis of this, automatically adjusts and delimits the field of treatment".

 

All this involves optimizing the process and obtaining the best image quality adapted to each patient, also complying with the optimal radiation dosage standards. "In fact, in general terms, thanks to these types of rooms, radiation doses to patients are reduced by approximately half", said Marciano Gómez. This decrease can be up to 45% in studies of the pediatric abdomen, 15.5% in the pediatric thorax and up to 27% in the pediatric skull. 

 

The councilor added that, in addition, with this system "test rejection rates are reduced, since it incorporates a motion sensor, which prevents the radiodiagnostic technician from activating the system in the event that the patient moga".

 

Real-time detection

These rooms also have other artificial intelligence tools that, for example, through algorithms are able to detect in real time the anomalies presented by the patient in a chest test, which can contribute to reducing reading times and help in the diagnosis. Another advantage is that, with a single exposure, the software allows different views, such as removing the view of the ribs in a chest X-ray, seeing only the tubes and drains, etc., without the need for further acquisitions and so on. avoid unnecessary radiation to the patient. 

 

The head of Health has remarked that "in short, the aim of these teams is patient care through dose control, so everything is designed to contribute to the ergonomics and productivity of the room, that everything is automatic and specific for each patient and that their radiological examination is specific". 

 

"On the other hand - the councilor continued - in addition to the undoubted benefits that these rooms bring to the patient, they are a great help for radiodiagnostic professionals, who no longer have to calculate all the specific parameters in each examination". "Likewise, since they are robotic with ceiling suspension and all the movements can be done automatically, the technicians don't have to position the patient manually either, with what this entails reducing physical effort and minimizing injuries", he pointed out.

 

The first hospital to have this cutting-edge technological equipment was General Doctor Balmis in Alicante, whose first room was put into operation at the end of October and where 2,160 tests have already been carried out 1,888 patients. Since the month of January, he has had a second one exactly the same. 

 

The other five identical teams to those of the Alicante hospital have already been installed in two rooms of the General d'Elche, in two others of the Clinic of Valencia and one of the Malva-rosa of Valencia. They are already in operation at the illegal hospital and will soon be operational in the centers of the Valencian capital. 

 

To these ceiling radiology equipment, another 10 similar ones will be added, for which 2 million euros will be invested and they will be installed in the General Hospital of Castelló, Doctor Peset de Valencia, Francesc de Borja de Gandia, the Lluís Alcanyís de Xàtiva, the Marina Baixa de la Vila Joiosa, the General d'Elda and the integrated health center of Villena.

 

New heliport 

During his visit to the Alicante hospital, the councilor also referred to the recent opening to traffic of the permanent heliport for restricted medical use, located on the roof of the hospital's car park.

Marciano Gómez has valued this infrastructure, "since it makes it possible to shorten distances and reduce response time in assistance, since during the last eight years the medical helicopters landed at the Sant Vicent del Raspeig fire station and from there it was the one transferred by ambulance to the Alicante hospital".

 

The heliport, operational since last week, has a total area of ​​around 2,100 square meters and has involved an investment of 240,000 euros. The infrastructure is made up of the helipad, for the landing and take-off of aircraft, with visual aids for maneuvers, light beacons for night use and means of fire protection. 

 

The work consisted of adapting the project to the current regulations, in terms of operational security of restricted-use aerodromes. The pavement, the electrical installation, the fire extinguishing system, as well as the visual aids, have been adapted. 

 

Once the works have been completed, the necessary steps have been taken to achieve the resolution of opening to traffic. In this sense, the teams that will be directly involved in the use of the heliport have been formed, such as the professionals from the Health Emergency Service of the Valencian Community and the Doctor Balmis Hospital.