PALMERSTON – After several years of lobbying, hard work and a fundraising campaign that raised over $8 million, the new MRI machine has finally arrived at Palmerston and District Hospital.
Officials say the machine, which arrived on July 2 and should be up and running by the fall, will help reduce wait times, eliminate the need to travel for the service and alleviate pressure on other hospitals.
“This is a transformative moment for our hospital and the communities we serve,” stated Richard Al, the hospital’s chief information officer, in a July 3 press release.
“The arrival of this MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machine means patients will no longer need to travel to larger centres for timely, high-quality imaging.
“It’s a major step forward in providing care closer to home.”
In an interview with the Advertiser, Al said the Waterloo-Wellington region is meeting the target wait times for priority-two and -three patients, but priority-four patients have fallen behind.
The target to scan priority-four is within 28 days, but Al said the wait time currently sits at around 70 days.
The Ontario Health website states only 34 per cent of patients in the province needing an MRI get scanned in the target time.
The purchase of the MRI machine was made possible through “the generous support of the community and the Palmerston and District Hospital Foundation, which led a successful fundraising campaign,” hospital officials say.
“Our community truly came together to make this happen,” stated Earl Campbell, president of the hospital foundation.
“Thanks to the generosity of local donors, businesses, and service organizations, we are now able to offer world-class diagnostic imaging right here in rural Wellington.”
Officials expect the MRI machine to be fully operational by the fall, following installation and staff training.
Al said there will be three staff trained on the MRI machine – two existing staff members and one external hire.
A long process
The new MRI machine was first approved in December of 2022, when the province announced it was providing about $20 million for the operating costs of 27 MRI machines across Ontario.
North Wellington Health Care (NWHC) officials have said they expect annual funding for the Palmerston MRI machine to total about $800,000.
That covers wages for technologists and support services, as well as supplies, electricity and more.
The cost of purchasing the machines, plus construction costs, is left to individual hospitals and hospital foundations.
Why Palmerston?
Palmerston was chosen to receive operational funding by Ontario officials following a process initiated in December 2021, when the province asked hospitals to submit a business case for funding.
Angela Stanley, CEO and president of NWHC, previously told the Advertiser the Palmerston hospital was chosen due to the “significant gap of service for rural residents of southwestern Ontario.”
Palmerston also had the space for it and a hospital foundation with the ability to support the project, she added.
Stanley said the Palmerston business case was the only one submitted by the Wellington Health Care Alliance, which also operates Groves hospital in Centre Wellington and Louise Marshall Hospital in Mount Forest.
