SUPERIOR – The Mineral Community Hospital recently received a grant, which paid for a brand new, state-of-the-art radiology lab for mammogram screenings.

According to Chris Watson, radiology manager at MCH, the new lab is completely digital. No film will be used when taking pictures for screenings. The new lab will speed up the time it takes to perform a mammogram because the new machine digitally processes images, and those pictures can be ready for analysis in minutes. The technology also allows the images to be forwarded to other doctors in a much easier process. The images will also be available by print CD.

According to John Updike, chief operating officer of MCH, there will be almost no processing time and patients will not have to wait long to learn of any problems that need further investigation.

The all-digital nature of the new lab also means images will be viewable in 3D and can be manipulated so the radiologist can see all angles of the tissue. According to Watson, this will increase accuracy during a preliminary screening.

Updike said the new equipment is the latest technology on the planet.

“Nobody has any better unit or any better capability to do mammography than we do right now,” said Updike.

Before the new lab was set up, there was only one radiology lab that covered everything. Watson said patients needing a mammogram screening would have to wait outside the lab if a patient requiring high-priority x-rays came in.

“If we had a trauma going on, then our mammogram patient would have to wait [outside the lab] while the trauma was taken care of,” said Watson.

Watson said that mammograms will now be done in a private room dedicated to this function. There will be no overlap between patients of the two radiology labs.

“This way, one on one, right in our new [mammography] suite,” she said.

According to Watson, the new suite will be more comfortable for patients. The room will be kept warmer and there will be a wheelchair-accessible dressing area in the room so patients can change in complete privacy. Watson also said screenings will be done with a shorter radiation exposure time and, while there will still be some compression of the breast tissue, it won’t be for as long as with an analogue machine.

Funding for the new lab came from a grant courtesy of the Helmsley Charitable Foundation Trust. MCH was invited by the group to apply for the grant and was one of three hospitals in the state to receive it. According to their website, the Helmsley Trust supports organizations in health, medical research and other nonprofits. Watson stated the Helmsley Foundation is especially interested in women’s health.

Updike said people from all over Mineral County and western Montana come to MCH to use the radiology facilities.

“They come here because Chris [Watson] is so good at what she does,” Updike said. “She runs a very good department.”

In all, the new suite cost a total of about $375,000 out of the approximately $460,000 grant. The new equipment cost about $260,000 and an office was renovated into the new suite. The remainder of the grant money will be used to pay for maintenance on the new equipment for a few years.