Private hospital opens €1.3m scan unit

THE Mid-West’s medical infrastructure got a boost yesterday with the opening of a €1.3 million CT scan unit at the privately-run Barrington’s Hospital in Limerick.

The CT (computed tomography) unit is part of a €22m expansion of the hospital taking place this year.

Barrington’s has been operating for over 15 years with major health insurance companies including VHI, BUPA and Vivas.

A spokesman for the private hospital said: “We plan to treat public patients under the National Treatment Purchase Fund as part of the HSE’s health strategy initiative to reduce public waiting lists.”

The inpatient and outpatient hospital’s facilities include three operating theatres, an endoscopy unit and side room operating facilities. Barrington’s has 40 beds and last year performed more than 7,000 surgical procedures.

Outpatient facilities include consulting suites, a dermatology unit, laboratory services, health screening, a plastic reconstructive and cosmetic unit, digital mammography and general radiology services.

An adjacent property has been acquired for the development of four state-of-the-art operating facilities, an angiography suite, a specialised radiology unit and improved laboratory facilities. The expansion will also allow for an additional 25 beds.

The new CT facility opened yesterday offers the latest technology in scanning and is the first scanner of its kind available outside of Dublin.

The 64 Slice Scanner gives a new level of coverage speed, enabling consultants scan every organ in the body, head to toe, in 10 seconds.

“The multi-slice scanner represents a significant development in the preventative treatment of cardiovascular disease. It is a non-invasive approach to the early diagnosis and prevention of cardiovascular disease,” said a hospital spokesman.

The CT is opening doors to new clinical applications and making routine studies better, he added.