Junk Architects is pleased to bring you the latest in MRI information specific to your planning, design and safety considerations.

More Feedback and Interest

RadiologyToday magazine has scheduled an excellent article on magnetic contamination for their October 11th issue. The draft we've seen included commentary from Lindgren Shielding, Field Management Services, and Dr. Emanuel Kanal, FACR. This article in Radiology Today is in addition to the several excellent pieces on magnetic contamination that have recently run in Diagnostic Imaging, SCAN, and Medical Dealer magazines.

On September 22nd AuntMinnie re-published our article on a new MR-Safe fire extinguisher by DuPont and Ansul, which was originally featured in the July issue of this newsletter.

Lastly, Medical Dealer magazine is reprinting our article on When 'Safe' Isn't Safe Enough from our September newsletter

And Speaking of MR-Safe...

Boy are our faces red! Most of you who read this newsletter wouldn't have seen the error (because we scurried to correct it as soon as it was brought to our attention) but Frank Shellock, Ph.D. and founder of www.MRIsafety.com, caught us in our own vocabulary confusion. In last month's article, "When 'Safe' Isn't Safe Enough," we inadvertantly substituted the phrase "MR-Compliant" for what should have been "MR-Compatible."

To any of you who read the article before this correction, we owe you an apology. The term "MR-Compliant," even though it is sometimes erroneously substituted for "MR-Compatible," has no official meaning. For your facilities, you should seek out appropriate products and equipment that are verified MR-Safe and MR-Compatible. Any other term is meaningless.

Our article intended to point out how the term "MR-Compatible" doesn't have nearly the emotional weight as "MR-Safe" and, as such is less memorable. The fact that "Compatible" is more safe than "Safe" also leads to all sorts of confusion. We had hoped only to report on this confusion and not prove it outselves. Our thanks again to Frank Shellock for graciously bringing this to our attention for the benefit of you, our readers.

Magnetic Contamination Symposium Recap

On September 22nd, Robert Junk and Tobias Gilk spoke on magnetic contamination at the 17th annual 'National Symposium on Healthcare Design'. We were joined by our new associate, Catherine Pafford, who will be working with our specialty consulting team.

At the Symposium we presented to architects, designers and hospital staff charged with the decisions that affect MRI suites across the country. Thank you to everyone who attended our sessions and those who spoke with us during the conference.

We would also like to offer a special recognition and thank you to Joe Weibler and the tremendous staff at Lindgren RF Shielding, our gracious sponsor for this presentation. Without their support we wouldn't have had the opportunity to share this information at the Symposium

In honor of the world's largest radiology show, next month we will be running features highlighting several new applications, products and problems for MRI. For those who will be going to Chicago for the show, we hope it will serve as a checklist of several issues to investigate for yourselves with the vendors on the exhibit hall floor. For those who aren't going to the conference, we hope that you'll use the information in next month's newsletter to help make sure you remain on top of the latest developments, even if you don't get to experience RSNA's thrills of instantaneous exhibit hall sensory overload.

Stay connected and watch for upcoming articles on subjects that will help improve your facility's performance in patient care, safety and on the bottom line!

Ten questions to ask your MRI architect.

What does it take to implement the ACR 4-Zone protocol?

Ferrous-only detectors: Can they redeem automated screening?

Will insurance companies charge higher premiums for unsafe facilities?

Why upgrading to 3.0 T is so much more than a 'swap.'

Square pegs - Round holes: How to retrofit a MRI into an existing building.

Safety vs. The Bottom Line? Why it pays to be safe.

Interventional MRI, is it the next big revenue stream for imaging centers?

Laser Simulation for MRI: A technology that's here today.

Use these articles to keep up on the latest news, standards and trends in MRI facilities.

Know of someone who you think would like to receive this newsletter? Let us know and we'll invite them, on your behalf. Of course, you're always welcome to refer yourself, if you've received a forwarded copy of this newsletter.

Our newsletter distribution keeps growing and our readers keep asking us to include vital planning, design and safety information that just can't be found elsewhere. While we are excited that this newsletter keeps growing in both content and distribution, the expenses associated with its production have grown too.

Just so you know, we have no plans to cut back! In fact, we only hope to continue to grow the newsletter (with your help). But to do this we are going to be moving to a paid subscription format around the first of the year. We will make a few editions of the newsletter public every year, but most full editions will only go to subscribers.

We are still working out the details and welcome your thoughts on this change. Watch the next couple editions of the newsletter for important information on how and when we will be implementing our new subscription policy.