News & Articles

Jersey Shore Hospital Installs New Lightspeed
CT Imaging System To Improve Patient Diagnosis

CT Scanner Lets Doctors Provide Faster, More Accurate Exams

Jersey Shore, PA (June 28, 2002) - Jersey Shore Hospital has acquired a breakthrough computed tomography (CT) scanner that provides detailed images of the human body. According to Ed Sowul, Director of Radiology, this advanced technology not only means more diagnostic information for doctors in routine situations, but its speed can also save precious exam time in the emergency room.

The new LightSpeed CT scanner from GE Medical Systems allows doctors to simultaneously capture multiple images of a patient's anatomy in a matter of minutes. "In many cases, emergency room (ER) physicians rely on images from CT scanners to assess the extent of an internal injury during the first and most critical hour for trauma patients in the ER," said Sowul. “Reducing the scan time by a few minutes or more can allow ER physicians to begin treating patients much more quickly.”

CT exams are used when people are ill or injured, or when a doctor suspects a medical problem that is not easily detectable from a normal physical examination. The LightSpeed CT scanner assists physicians in the diagnosis of a variety of anatomic areas, including spine, head, abdomen and chest. The hospital can now provide advanced analysis and blood flow results not available previously.

“With LightSpeed, a CT exam that used to take us three minutes to perform can now be completed in approximately 20 seconds,” said Sowul. “This allows us the speed and accuracy we need to quickly diagnose a variety of conditions for emergency and non-emergency patients of all ages.” The staff will: spend less time formatting, as the new scanner will automatically begin as a protocall is selected by a technician, spend less time reading and analyzing film and ultimately become more productive to better serve the needs of their patients.

The addition of LightSpeed complements and extends the high range of quality diagnostic services that Jersey Shore Hospital offers. The LightSpeed CT scanner is the first of it's kind in the area. With this advanced technology, Jersey Shore Hospital will be able to better serve their patient's and physician's needs.

For more information regarding the new LightSpeed CT scanner, please contact Ed Sowul, Director of Radiology, Jersey Shore Hospital at 398-0100 ext. 4481.