Latest diagnostic imaging technology is now available

Cobar residents will have better access to the latest diagnostic imaging technology, with NSW’s first mobile CT imaging van officially announced by Minister for Health Ryan Park last week.

CT – or computed tomography – takes detailed images of the internal organs, bones, soft tissue and blood vessels.

The new Remote Mobile CT Service will be used for non-emergency patients to help diagnose causes of pain from muscles or joints, detect diseases or prepare patients for further treatment or surgery.

Minister Park said the ground-breaking service will begin welcoming patients in the coming weeks, and is expected to see around 1,500 per year as it rotates between Cobar, Walgett and Bourke.

He said the Remote Mobile CT Service is undergoing its final stages of preparation.

“Bringing these specialist services closer to people’s homes is tremendously important in this part of the state, where the cost and complexity of travel and leaving family or community can be a disincentive.

“There is no fixed CT service between Dubbo and Broken Hill to the west, and the Queensland border to the north, so this unique service will significantly improve access to this important care for our remote communities.

“Having the Remote Mobile CT Service at their doorstep will help many patients avoid hours on the road, some of them up to 10-hour round trips to Dubbo, to have scans.

“It will also be a huge benefit as we continue improving health outcomes among our Aboriginal communities.”

Western NSW Local Health District Imaging

Services General Manager James Harvey said the service is a fully-equipped CT scanner installed in a custom-built housing on the back of a rigid truck.

The housing expands to create an airconditioned scanning room and reception, en-

“The truck has a bed lifter to transfer patients in beds or wheelchairs, and we’ve ensured each hospital site in the mobile CT’s rotation has had significant power, data and parking upgrades so the van’s functions are the same as a fixed service,” Mr Harvey said.