How to be more strategic with your in-office MRI 

Technologies that can help orthopedic practices respond to today’s trends

Aside from the challenges of imaging workflows and maintaining high clinical confidence across aging and implant patients, you’ll need to consider how your practice—and your in-office MRI service in particular—compares in your market. Are there ways you can use your in-office MRI service as a market differentiator?

Here, MRI technologies and features that can support better patient experiences may be key. Like, for example, an 80-cm bore that can accommodate larger patient sizes and potentially provide more comfortable patient experiences. This can help reduce the need for repeat exams and, as a result, enable your team to scan more patients. An attribute like this could help your practice stand out from other practices and capture a larger share of volume in the market overall.

Healthcare providers of all types are facing staffing challenges—from shortages of trained technologists to scheduling issues. Several solutions can help orthopedic practices with in-office MRI services manage these staffing issues with greater success.

What’s more, today’s AI and digital technologies may help practices scan patients faster and potentially support higher patient volumes (which will be critical as more imaging exams are moved to non-hospital sites of care). Specifically, in-office MRI can benefit from:

• Automation that supports easier exam setups and faster exams
• AI-based technologies that can help staff scan more patients
• Remote workforce solutions to supplement staff

As the population ages, orthopedic practices will need in-office MRI systems that offer patient accommodations for factors like metal implants. Total hip arthroplasty is, in fact, one of the most rapidly growing procedures in the U.S., with a projected increase of more than 174% in the next decade.¹

To support your clinical confidence, look for MRI technologies that can minimize artifacts during image acquisition. Also, consider technology that provides more detailed evaluation or visualization of the tissue surrounding orthopedic implants. This could be essential to supporting patient outcomes, detecting post-operative clinical conditions, and efficiently scheduling patients to maximize throughput.

Aside from the challenges of imaging workflows and maintaining high clinical confidence across aging and implant patients, you’ll need to consider how your practice—and your in-office MRI service in particular—compares in your market. Are there ways you can use your in-office MRI service as a market differentiator?

Here, MRI technologies and features that can support better patient experiences may be key. Like, for example, an 80-cm bore that can accommodate larger patient sizes and potentially provide more comfortable patient experiences. This can help reduce the need for repeat exams and, as a result, enable your team to scan more patients. An attribute like this could help your practice stand out from other practices and capture a larger share of volume in the market overall.