Higher degree of accuracy boosts confidence that a diagnosis is correct
Advanced diagnostic capabilities promise better health outcomes without the wait.
Waiting for diagnosis and treatment can be an extremely stressful time for people facing serious illness. In British Columbia, private advanced diagnostic centres attempt to reduce that stress by providing access to accurate, timely and non-invasive procedures for diagnosing and treating diseases in nearly every organ of the body.
What to look for
With any diagnostic scan there are two key elements that determine the quality of the end result: the quality of the diagnostic technology performing the scan, and the experience and expertise of the radiologist that reviews and analyzes the results.
Where to find it
A partnership between Vancouver Imaging and False Creek Healthcare brings together the best of both worlds by pairing the largest group of subspecialist radiologists in British Columbia with the state-of-the-art advanced diagnostic technology at False Creek Healthcare in Vancouver. At the facility, radiologists have access to a GE 3.0 Tesla HDxt MRI. This scanner produces images faster with greater detail than a conventional 1.5 Tesla MRI scanner. A GE LightSpeed VCT 64-Slice CT scanner also produces CT images of diagnostic detail. Other advanced technology used at False Creek includes Siemens and GE Ultrasound systems that are utilized for diagnostic exams and guided needle biopsies to accurately target specific tissue, as well as a GE digital X-ray system for fast, detailed X-Ray scans.
What this means for patients
“Imaging plays such an important role in clinical diagnosis today,” says Dr. William Yee, Radiology Director at False Creek Healthcare. “Consultations from subspecialist radiologists at False Creek enable ordering physicians to more effectively and efficiently manage their patients and improve surgical and therapeutic outcomes. Patients can be confident that their radiology examinations are attended by some of the most skilled radiologists in B.C.––and that ultimately results in optimal patient care.”
Radiologists at False Creek Healthcare cover eight areas of subspecialty: abdominal imaging, cardiac and pulmonary imaging, emergency radiology, musculoskeletal, neuro-radiology (nervous system), interventional radiology, neuro-interventional and ultrasound. “Advances in imaging technology continue at a rapid pace, allowing more accurate diagnoses adds Dr. Yee.
“Our radiologists complete subspecialty training, acquiring their depth of expertise. Focusing more exclusively on one area, they become experts in that area and provide definitive and detailed reports with fewer errors.”
Services are immediately available
State-of-the-art diagnostic testing available at False Creek includes image-guided needle biopsy of the breast, prostate, liver, lymph node or thyroid; echocardiograms; cardiac CT angiography to measure coronary calcium in the arteries; CT colonography to screens intestinal polyps; CT lung cancer screening; MRI to detect disease or injury in the brain and spinal cord, bones and joints, chest, abdominal and pelvic organs, heart, prostate and breast.
While the marrying of rapidly evolving technology and radiological expertise improves the speed and accuracy of diagnoses, interventional radiologists also offer treatment alternatives that are less invasive than traditional surgical procedures.
“We can now treat some cancers by introducing radioactivity directly into the tumour,” explains Dr. Yee. “The range of interventional radiology procedures available today continues to grow and includes drainage, tumour ablation, pain management, embolization [to block blood vessels], angioplasty [to widen obstructed arteries], stent replacement and thrombus [blood clot] management.”
False Creek Healthcare’s advanced technology and subspecialist radiologists offer distinct advantages to patients seeking answers to their health issues. Greater speed, a higher degree of accuracy and fewer errors goes a long way to boosting confidence that a diagnosis is correct and that treatment will be effective.
Your next steps
To learn more about False Creek Healthcare Centre’s MRI, CT and Ultrasound diagnostic capabilities and how its radiologists can help you, call 604-739-9695 or visit falsecreekdiagnostics.com