Beaufort Memorial Hospital is celebrating the opening of its new state-of-the-art Women’s Imaging Center with an open house and reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. next Thursday, Aug. 4.
The public is invited to tour the $1.3 million facility devoted exclusively to women’s imaging needs. Located adjacent to the hospital in Suite 110 of Beaufort Memorial Plaza, 989 Ribaut Rd., the 4,100-square-foot center offers digital diagnostic and screening mammograms, ultrasounds, bone density scans and stereotactic breast biopsy — all in a relaxing, stress-free environment.<!--more--><a href="http://www.beaufortislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/nurnberg_110630_06970_5881.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2383" title="nurnberg_110630_06970_5881" src="http://www.beaufortislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/nurnberg_110630_06970_5881-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /></a>
“We had been providing these breast services in different locations throughout the hospital,” said Daniel Mock, Senior Director of Imaging Services. “When the opportunity arose for us to have an area dedicated just to breast health services, we realized we also had an opportunity to coordinate those services to be more responsive to each patient’s needs.”
All of the center’s digital imaging capability was funded through community donations to the BMH Foundation. An on-site radiologist will review every mammogram just moments after the screening, providing patients with their findings before they leave the center.
“You don’t have to go home not knowing the outcome of your X-ray,” said Pat Foulger, RN, BMH Vice President of Quality Services. “More importantly, if we find an abnormality, we’ll be able to act on it right away.”
Designed with the healing arts in mind, the center features relaxing interior colors, soft lighting and soothing background music to help relieve anxiety and promote renewal.  Changing rooms open into their own individual examination rooms to provide patients with more privacy and personal space. New, “softer” mammograms with mammopads will make the annual breast screening a more comfortable experience.
During the open house, participants will have the opportunity to meet the staff, ask questions and book their annual mammograms. Refreshments will be served during the event.
BMH created the Women’s Imaging Center in response to a focus group study conducted several years ago in Beaufort and Bluffton. An overwhelming number of women who participated in the study said they wanted quality care delivered with sensitivity and compassion in a convenient and pleasant environment.
“They weren’t just asking for a larger building or more technology;” Foulger said. “They wanted a lot more.”
Working closely with the physicians who will be referring patients to the center, hospital administrators developed protocols to cover the entire process of care from the initial examination to follow-up testing should a mammogram reveal an abnormality to treatment at the Keyserling Cancer Center.
Here’s how it will work: After taking the mammogram, the technologist will process the images. If the doctor also ordered a bone scan, the technologist can perform it following the mammogram. After that, the patient will be free to get dressed and return to the waiting room for a cup of tea or coffee.
If the mammogram is clear, the technologist will come out to the waiting room and let the patient know the results. Her doctor will be notified as well.
In the event the radiologist finds an abnormality, he will contact the doctor immediately to discuss further diagnostic testing. The radiologist will meet with the patient, giving her the option to return at a later date for the test or have it done on the spot. Breast Care Coordinator Ronda O’Connell, RN, will join them to answer any questions the patient may have.
Mammograms can be scheduled by calling (843) 522-5015. To save time, women may also complete and submit the on-line pre-registration form.  For more information on the Women’s Imaging Center, visit www.bmhsc.org.