The Baltic Academy of Radiology is Now Open
The new Baltic Academy of Radiology, established by the ARS Diagnostics Clinic in collaboration with Toshiba Medical, was opened at 3 Jāņa Asara Street in Riga, Latvia on Wednesday, 5 April 2017.
The Baltic Academy of Radiology has been established by combining the knowledge of the best Latvian medical doctors and the most advanced methods of diagnostics. Toshiba Aquilion One, currently the only 320-slice CT machine available in Eastern Europe, and one of the cornerstones of the newly established Baltic Academy of Radiology, was opened officially together with the Academy. This machine is unique in that it offers unprecedented opportunities for medical diagnostics and treatment; other machines of this kind may found at the best university clinics elsewhere in the world.
About people
Taking care of the renewal of the resources of health professionals, the ARS Medical Centre and Toshiba Medical will provide two scholarships for residents (house officers) and junior doctors every year, which will enable taking part in all training free of charge. ‘I’m very honoured today! The experience that we at the ARS Medical Centre have accumulated over 30 years, by overcoming the years of crisis and many other obstacles, has become a stable value that can be trusted. We’re pleased that our contribution to the field of medicine and efforts have been appreciated by Toshiba Medical, one of the leading manufacturers of medical devices in the world, by offering to establish the Baltic Academy of Radiology as a training base for radiologists in the Baltic States under the auspices of our Clinic. This means that the direction we’ve chosen is the right one and it offers new challenges. And here’s more good news: the Baltic Academy of Radiology will attract, with the support of our cooperation partner Toshiba Medical, globally recognised authorities in diagnostic radiology. Let’s grow together!’ said Mr Māris Andersons, Chairman of the Board of the ARS Medical Centre.
Maija RADZIŅA. M.D., the Leading Specialist of the Baltic Academy of Radiology: ‘Technological progress enables continuous development in the field of radiology: modern diagnostic performance is inconceivable without fast, exceptionally detailed and precise as well as specialised examinations in line with high professional requirements. These preconditions can be met by combining innovative technology with continuous professional growth, hence professional education and development are the main objectives of the Baltic Academy of Radiology.’
The opening ceremony of the Academy was honoured by the presence of Her Excellency Ms Mariko Fujii, the Ambassador of Japan to Latvia, Mr Hiroyuki Tachikawa, President and CEO of Toshiba Medical Europe, and Mr Kai Odner, General Manager of the Toshiba Medical Europe Partners’ Network. Mrs Maija Radziņa, M.D., the Leading Specialist of the Baltic Academy of Radiology, Mr Igors Palkovs, Chairman of the Board and Co-owner of company A.Medical, as well as Ms Liene Zemniece and Mr Sergejs Pavlovičs, representatives of the Latvian Association of Junior Doctors, were also present at the festive ceremony.
About the Academy
The Baltic Academy of Radiology is a vocational radiology training and education project which is being implemented under the auspices of the Diagnostic Clinic of the ARS Medical Centre with the support of Toshiba Medical, the leading producer of medical diagnostic equipment. The main objective of the project is to contribute to the professional growth of health professionals in Latvia and abroad by offering a variety of practical training programs, opportunities to master new, innovative and modern methods of diagnostic radiology, and by providing for their application in clinical work.
The Baltic Academy of Radiology will attract, with the support of its cooperation partner Toshiba Medical in the training process, globally recognized authorities in the field of diagnostic radiology. The technological base for the training will be provided by the ARS Medical Centre which has the most modern and innovative technologies available in the country – state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment – at its disposal, including Toshiba Aquilion One, the only 320-slice CT Machine of its kind in the Baltic States, which was launched in an opening ceremony together with the Baltic Academy of Radiology.
About the CT Scanner
The new CT Scanner, created by the Japanese manufacturer of medical equipment Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, is currently the one of its kind in the Baltic States. There are only two other such CT scanners in the region nearby; both are located in the Nordic Countries: one is at the Karolinska University Hospital in Sweden, and the other is located at the Oslo Clinic in Norway.
The new technology incorporated in the machine provides for a much wider scanning of rows thereby significantly reducing the duration of examination and the received radiation dose as well as improving the quality of imagery. A unique gantry aperture also provides an opportunity to perform a CT exam by changing the angles in the range of +/- 30 degrees so as to prevent sensitive organs from exposure to radiation. The latest generation of detector technology enables performing basic examinations with a significantly lower radiation dose (up to 40 per cent) as well as provides for the possibility to perform various additional screening tests. For example, when undergoing a chest CT exam with a particularly low radiation dose, the patient receives the same radiation dose as on an X-ray machine, but the diagnostic possibilities of a CT scanner are significantly higher. The short rotation time of the detector and lamp system (only 0.275 seconds in a 360-degree rotation) enables examining different joints in motion, which was not possible before, and performing complex cardiac examinations.
For more information about the Academy and for contact information please visit the website: www.radiologyacademy.lv
