D oi ng i t B e t t e r E v e r y Day
Capitalizing on Technology New tools and technology often cause excitement in health care, because it ultimately means more efficiency and a better experience for the patient. The Imaging Department at Herrin Hospital is seeing benefits from a new digital fluoroscopy unit, a form of x-ray that allows surgeons to view deep structures of the body in real time on a computer monitor. It helps physicians evaluate a wide range of internal functions and structures—especially in areas like the intestines, stomach, bladder and the cardiac muscle. Unlike regular x-ray, digital fluoroscopy records a series of images to a computer. It yields a high resolution digital image that can be viewed much like a movie of what is happening inside the body.
Big Things Come in Small Packages— The Axera Access Device One small tool decreases discharge times and improves efficiency in the Memorial Hospital of Carbondale cardiac catheterization lab. During a heart cath, doctors access heart arteries via an opening in the femoral (leg) artery. In the past this meant a four to six hour recovery monitoring that access point. Using the new Axera Access Device to ensure closure of the artery, patients are now discharged within an amazing 60 minutes of the procedure.