New medical imaging equipment improving health outcomes in the Wimmera

Pictured: Rural Northwest Health's Executive Manager Environmental Services, David Siddall with the organisation's new ultrasound machine.

Locals in the Wimmera region no longer need to travel to Melbourne for ultrasound scans thanks to equipment procured for Rural Northwest Health.

The ultrasound machine was part of a medical imaging tender carried out by HSV on behalf of Rural Northwest Health which included high specification ultrasound and X-ray equipment.

Rural Northwest Health Sonographer Stephen Jones says people previously had to make the four-hour trip to Melbourne for services that can now be offered locally.

“There aren’t too many clinics as remote as Warracknabeal. Now that we have the Canon Aplio i800 ultrasound and a new X-ray machine, we can offer services that are as good as any in the country,” he says.

HSV completed the successful ultrasound tender on behalf of Rural Northwest Health earlier this year.

HSV Head of Sourcing – Equipment Mark Lennen says the team works closely with participating health services, including clinicians to determine current and future needs, enabling them to achieve better outcomes.

“We can add a lot of value when we work closely with clinicians including cost savings and the ability to source equipment with higher end specifications,” he says.

“Due to our ongoing work with suppliers, we can also achieve faster turnaround times.”

Rural Northwest Health is a small rural health organisation that provides aged care, urgent care, allied health and community-based services across three sites.

Stephen Jones says the clinic offers a full range of ultrasound services including obstetric, gynaecological, paediatric, musculoskeletal and abdominal scans.

He says the new ultrasound machine produces clearer imaging and will improve health outcomes for locals.

“It has a feature that allows us to test for changes in the liver. Given that liver disease affects around 25 per cent of the population to some degree, this provides a whole new service to the community. Previously, people had to travel to Melbourne for this service,” he says.

More than six million Australians suffer from chronic liver disease with common causes including alcohol, hepatitis C and obesity-related fatty liver disease. Liver cancer caused by chronic viral hepatitis infection is the fastest-growing cause of cancer death in Australia.

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, people living in remote areas often have higher rates of hospitalisations, deaths and injury and poorer access to primary health care services.

Rural Northwest Health Executive Manager Environmental Services David Siddall says the clinic was able to procure a higher end ultrasound machine by working with HSV.

David says he has personally experienced the benefits of the new equipment. Before the new ultrasound machine was installed earlier this month, he received an ultrasound scan for a shoulder complaint on the clinic’s old machine which failed to detect any issues.

“When I had a scan on the new machine it picked up bursitis and tendonitis in my shoulder right away. I could see it clearly on the image,” he says.

David says Rural Northwest Health doesn’t have the in-house expertise to manage this type of tender.

“HSV made sure proper processes were followed, including probity checks. They helped negotiate with suppliers and liaised with the Department of Health in relation to capital funding,” he says.

For more information about support for medical equipment procurement, please contact your HSV Customer Relationship Manager or the HSV Helpdesk at helpdesk@healthsharevic.org.au or phone 03 9947 3900.