Like many facilities across the country, South Shore Hospital in South Weymouth, MA, has experienced a significant increase in CT studies. In 2024, the facility performed 30% more CT exams than the year prior, now totaling 350 exams per day. As the largest independent health system in Southeastern Massachusetts, South Shore Hospital realized it needed to replace its aging LightSpeed VCT system to accommodate this growth. The hospital chose GE HealthCare's Revolution™ Apex Platform. This has not only improved CT image quality, but has helped them keep up with increased demand for CT studies.
Addressing staffing issues with automation
South Shore Hospital’s increase in CT exams was partly due to a nearby hospital closing and another health system teetering on bankruptcy, which diverted a large number of patients to the hospital. Staffing shortages have hampered the facility’s ability to efficiently manage this workload, driving the hospital to hire contingent workers from across the country to close the gap.
This means not all staff have the same training, level of experience, or familiarity with the facility’s machines and systems. Kara Pomroy, CT Supervisor, South Shore Health, says the Revolution Apex platform is easy to use, with an intuitive user interface that technologists can learn without significant training. “The Revolution Apex platform has made it a seamless effort for these contingent workers to come in and, within a very short amount of time, fit in just like regular staff,” Pomroy said.
The scanner features Effortless Workflow that uses AI technology to streamline the entire CT process to reduce manual tasks, which was previously not available on the older LightSpeed VCT system. This ensures that technologists localize and position patients correctly, minimizing errors and avoiding repeat scans. “Effortless Workflow has been revolutionary in terms of localizing and positioning the patient correctly, getting the scan done correctly each time, and providing correct reconstructions,” Dr. Ori Preis, Chairman, Department of Radiology, South Shore Health.
AI-based Auto Positioning also helps with patient positioning by automatically determining the correct table elevation and cradle movements to align the scan range center to the CT isocenter. “If we still had a VCT in our department, we would not be able to have any of these new protocols or new advanced scanning because the time of the reconstructions would have taken too long. The older machine didn't hold as much data as it does now,” Pomroy added.
AI delivers high-quality images – fast
South Shore Hospital has the fourth busiest Emergency Department (ED) in the state and is the only verified Level II Adult Trauma Center in the region. ED patients represent a large volume of the facility’s CT scans, sending patients who need to be scanned quickly and efficiently. The Revolution Apex platform is located next to the emergency department and is the first choice for emergency scans, such as identifying hematuria and mesenteric ischemia, and performing CT angiograms of the abdomen and pelvis.
“The scanner allows us to scan patients quickly and get them back to where they need to be,” said Dr. Preis.
In addition, TrueFidelity DL uses advanced deep learning image reconstruction to deliver high-quality, low noise images for improved diagnostic confidence. “TrueFidelity DL has changed the way we look at images. When we initially got it, some physicians felt uncomfortable looking at such a clean image. Now we just expect these clean images,” said Dr. Preis.
Technologists even have a nickname for the scanner due to its speed. “Everybody was like, this thing is like a rocket. So we started calling it Apollo, like the rocket ship,” said Pomroy.
GSI for speed and safety
The Revolution Apex Platform enables Gemstone Spectral Imaging (GSI), or dual-energy imaging, which uses fast kvp switching between two energies to provide more information to the reading physician than a single energy exam. It’s the first volume spectral CT technology designed to improve small lesion detection, tissue characterization and metal artifact reduction. At South Shore Hospital, they have implemented GSI across various CT protocols and this has had a positive effect, including for pulmonary embolism studies.
“The opacification of the pulmonary arteries is uniformly excellent, scan after scan. Differentiation between a vessel and an occluded vessel becomes obvious and almost always diagnostic. The scans just come out beautifully,” said Dr. Preis “Any radiologist, even one that is not trained on dual energy, can immediately see the benefits of dual energy when they look at a pulmonary embolism study from the Apex.”
GSI also reduces the need for iodinated contrast agent, which can be harmful to renal function, particularly in patients with pre-existing kidney issues. “Now we can potentially do studies on patients with borderline renal function, because we can still get adequate studies using lower doses of contrast,” said Dr. Preis.
Dual-energy CT has opened the door to new ways of imaging various anatomies, including lung perfusion studies using iodine maps. “I wish we could scan every patient on the Revolution Apex Platform,” said Dr. Preis.
Patient-focused exams
The Revolution Apex platform’s speed has allowed South Shore Hospital to increase throughput and see more patients in a day. Yet technologists report having more time to deliver a higher touch patient experience. “Because these machines automate much of the work, it allows you to have more one-on-one with your patient and give them the extra care that we got into this field for – plus with faster reconstruction times,” said Pomroy.
For example, HyperDrive leverages AI algorithms to streamline data processing, enabling faster exams and high-quality images without the need for breath holds. “HyperDrive allows us to get the patient through the gantry much quicker with high-quality images, even in patients who are short of breath or having a tough time staying still,” said Dr. Preis.
This allows staff to capture diagnostic-quality images in even the most complex and difficult cases, including patients with a larger body habitus. “These patients are scanned at reasonable radiation doses with adequate image quality, which is something we weren't able to do before,” said Dr. Preis
The hospital recently started using the Revolution Apex platform to perform cardiac scans. “Now we will be able to reduce dose and eventually contrast in cardiac studies because the machine picks the best phase to scan during the study. It’s given my technologists a whole new level of confidence,” said Pomroy.
What’s more, having a high-performance scanner like the Revolution Apex platform has increased access to imaging and patient care close to home. This has had a positive impact on their referral base and patient satisfaction scores, which over time could have a positive impact on their bottom line. “It’s opened up imaging to a new patient population. Now they don’t have to go to Boston for care and can stay right here in Weymouth,” said Pomroy.
Upgradeable technology for years to come
The Revolution Apex Platform has the unique ability to deliver all the technology South Shore Hospital needs today with the ability to seamlessly upgrade when those needs evolve. South Shore hospital also has Smart Subscription, a subscription-based service for CT applications that allows them to get the latest software updates as soon as they are commercially available, keeping them on the cutting edge of healthcare technology.
“To anybody looking to replace their CT scanner, I would tell them to consider investing in a high-quality dual-energy scanner like the Apex. I think it's going to become the standard of care,” said Dr. Preis.
Learn more about GE HealthCare’s CT solutions.
DISCLAIMER
The Statements by GE HealthCare’s customers described here are based on results that were achieved in the customer’s unique setting. Results may vary.
