Sentara Health Case StudyEnhancing healthcare excellence: improving patient access and driving business growth 

Discover how a regional healthcare system in Hampton Roads, Virginia, USA expanded its imaging capabilities and advanced patient care. By leveraging the industry’s broadest portfolio of PET tracers from the Radiopharma business of Siemens Healthineers, greater clinical impact was unlocked.

In the ever-evolving landscape of today’s healthcare, advanced imaging centers often find themselves at the intersection of remarkable growth opportunities and the necessity to embrace emerging technologies. Approximately two decades ago, Sentara Health, one of the largest health systems in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic and Southeast serving the Hampton Roads region, embarked on a joint venture with US Oncology to enhance community health by introducing PET/CT imaging services. The PET/CT program began modestly, with a single mobile unit and two technologists performing four to five scans per day. As volume increased, the need to expand PET/CT services and improve patient access across the community became clear.

“We were having issues and concerns with our workflow and operations in the department,” says Frances Vargas, regional PET/CT imaging manager for Sentara Health. “With our growing backlog and limited access to increasingly demanded novel radiotracers, we began looking at options, and that is when one of our technologists suggested Siemens Healthineers.” After considering other providers, leadership recognized the benefits of having both Siemens Healthineers equipment and radiopharmaceuticals. The clear synergies and advantages offered by both, made the decision an easy one. 

In 2016, when Sentara Health chose Siemens Healthineers as their PET/CT tracer provider, they soon discovered the value extended beyond providing a dose. “When I started working with Siemens Healthineers, we asked how late can we get a dose? How early? Can we get a dose on Saturday? On Sunday? I couldn’t believe this was real, that this service was available to us; it was very different in a very good way,” stated Vargas.

Sentara has partnered for more than a decade with Siemens Healthineers to bring novel tracers to their patients, ordering its first specialty drug in 2013 and continuing to work closely with the team to expand offerings. This collaboration provides access to the industry's broadest portfolio of PET/CT tracers, enabling participation in more than 10 clinical research trials and multiple investigative studies through 2023, while expanding access to novel tracers in the local community. “Physicians have options to send patients elsewhere, but choose Sentara because of our state-of-the-art Siemens Healthineers equipment, quality images, and comprehensive offering of PET/CT exams,” Vargas stated.

The utilization of PET/CT imaging continues to outpace many imaging centers' ability to adapt to an evolving landscape, and the growing number of new tracers entering the market often leads to increasing backlogs. When Sentara looked to the future, the Sentara Brock Cancer Center building was slotted to open in June 2020, providing increased PET/CT imaging slots with the addition of a fixed Siemens Healthineers Biograph™ mCT 40 PET/CT scanner. At that time, Sentara anticipated patient growth and wanted to ensure their high-energy tracer needs would be met. To serve the growing patient demand in the region, the Sentara team also expanded their staff and resources. However, due to the pandemic, like many other imaging facilities, Sentara faced safety guidelines and restrictions requiring strict protocols for social distancing. “We had to think of how to serve the same number of patients but still maintain the COVID restrictions,” Vargas stated. Sentara modified their procedures, which led to scanning patients seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. These expanded hours were supported by Siemens Healthineers until the Sentara Brock Cancer Center opened and increased the number of imaging slots, thus allowing the center to return to more normal operating hours by July 2020. 

Siemens Healthineers’ adherence to quality, ability to deliver during extended hours, accessibility to an array of PET tracers, and willingness to work side by side to serve patients better, contributed to the overall growth during this time. “Siemens Healthineers understands the need, the urgency, and we both have the common goal of servicing our patients, making us confident that Siemens Healthineers would continue to be a trusted partner for the years to come,” stated Vargas. 

In early 2022, Sentara faced additional challenges that resulted in a four-week backlog for Fludeoxyglucose F 18 Injection (18F FDG) scans and scheduling for specialty drugs depended on the type and complexity of the exam. Once more, Sentara identified a need for change and collaborated with Siemens Healthineers to expand hours to weeknights and weekends at all locations and pursued the purchase of a new PET/CT scanner. 

Sentara installed a new Siemens Healthineers Biograph Vision™ 450 mobile unit, in December 2023, resulting in a higher patient throughput. The reduced wait times for patients needing an ¹⁸F FDG or specialty drug PET/CT scan could potentially lead to earlier detection and better patient outcomes. Sentara’s comprehensive suite of imaging services and access to a broad portfolio of tracers offers a competitive advantage by attracting new patients and physicians seeking advanced diagnostic capabilities. (Figure 1 and 2) 

Siemens Healthineers is unwavering in its commitment to being a dependable partner, supporting Sentara Health’s mission to adopt the latest medical technologies and improve access to healthcare. “Our goal and passion are to provide the best care for our community, patients, and providers. Collaborating with Siemens Healthineers has enhanced our processes and workflow and has positively impacted our financial performance, allowing us to expand our services. This exemplifies the power of teamwork in action; our sustained success would not have been possible without this valuable partnership,” believes Vargas. 

Fast forward to today, Sentara Health has evolved into an expansive network spanning seven sites, supported by two mobile units and a dedicated PET/CT facility at the Sentara Brock Cancer Center. Within nine months, wait times improved by over 95%, significantly reducing patient backlogs. “Last month, we had no patients waiting for an earlier appointment, and we did that by expanding to weekends, evening time, and longer operational hours and certainly had to have Siemens Healthineers support on that,” explained Shannon Kriz, regional director, Radiation Services, Sentara Health. Siemens Healthineers fuels the power of PET with access to diverse PET radiopharmaceuticals, seamless delivery, and expert support, allowing imaging centers to focus on what is most important: their patients.