The St. Elisabeth Hospital in Leipzig has become one of the first hospitals in Germany to commission a KODAK DIRECTVIEW DR 9500 System from Carestream Health. The new equipment offers the advantage of both increased functionality and high patient throughput, utilising workstations with variable examination profiles.
The KODAK DIRECTVIEW DR 9500 System can handle all types of exam demand, from general radiology, paediatrics and orthopaedics, through to casualty X-rays. The unique ceiling-mounted U-arm contains both a tube and detector to deliver unprecedented mobility and operational flexibility for faster patient positioning. For example, it allows radiographers to capture images of the left and right side of the body without moving the patient. From an ergonomic point of view, adjustment techniques have never been easier.
The decision to move from analogue capture to digital radiography was supported by Hospital Administrator Dieter Blaßkiewitz, who commissioned the new system in July 2008. Head of Radiology at St. Elisabeth's Hospital, Dr. Hubertus Klaus, explained, "Our archives were full to overflowing, so we decided to make the switch from analogue to digital radiography directly, without compromise. Everything moves faster, it produces better images and is less unpleasant for patients."
Changing to Computed Radiography (CR) would have been an alternative to going direct to digital, but the visibly better image quality and the significantly higher patient throughput were the deciding factors in favour of a DR system.
Dr. Hubertus Klaus added, "With the new system, we are not compromising. Our largest client sends us patients at the rate of one a minute and wants to know the results as soon as the patient leaves our department. We would not be able to keep up with CR. We need the quickest and the best technology, not because we want to have the latest thing on the market, but because we simply need the most effective tool to be able to meet the demands of our work."
Located in the south of Leipzig, the Catholic-run St. Elisabeth Hospital is the city's third-largest hospital. A significant refurbishment programme was completed in 2003 and the hospital has an excellent reputation, both locally and nationally, because of its patient-oriented approach and excellent facilities. The hospital has been a Kodak and Carestream Health customer since the early 1990s, installing a range of medical imaging and IT solutions, including a PACS platform and archive.
Carestream Health, an independent company, has licensed the KODAK brand for use with its own brands - such as CARESTREAM, DIRECTVIEW and DRYVIEW - across its portfolio of leading-edge medical imaging and healthcare IT products.
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- Carestream Health's Profile
About Carestream Health, Inc.
Carestream Health, Inc., is a leading provider of dental and medical imaging systems and healthcare IT solutions; molecular imaging systems for the life science research and drug discovery/development market segments; and x-ray film and digital x-ray products for the non-destructive testing market. The company was formed in 2007 when Onex Corporation (TSX: OCX.TO) purchased Eastman Kodak Company's Health Group. For more information about Carestream Health, contact your Carestream Health representative or visit www.carestreamhealth.com.
CARESTREAM is a trademark of Carestream Health, Inc.
KODAK is a trademark of Kodak used under license.