League of Friends summer draw raises more funds for new MRI scanner

Almost £3,000 has been raised as part of a £1 million fund for a new MRI scanner at the Trust which runs Shropshire’s acute hospitals.

The money was raised by the League of Friends of the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) by selling tickets for their annual summer prize draw.

The money raised will go towards a £1 million fund for a new MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) scanner at RSH.

The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) is replacing its two existing MRI scanners, at RSH and at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, as part of a £1.7million investment during 2017/18.

The fundraising efforts of the League of Friends will see a third scanner installed at RSH by the end of March 2018. This will allow more patients to be seen.

Ray Smith, Chair of the League of Friends, said: “We are so grateful to the people of Shropshire and Mid Wales for the unstinting support that they have once again given us through ticket purchases in our summer draw. 

“We have committed to fund the purchase of an additional new MRI scanner to be located at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the entire proceeds of this draw will be put to this fantastic cause.

“I know that everyone who has supported our drive for funds will take enormous comfort in the fact that 100% of monies raised will be used for the purchase of the scanner and that there are no administrative expenses. Our fundraising organisation is entirely staffed by very able and willing volunteers.”

Glen Whitehouse, Radiology Centre Manager at SaTH said: “We are very excited about welcoming a third, state-of-the-art, MRI scanner to the Trust thanks to the generous funding from the RSH League of Friends.

“This new addition will complement our two current machines that are currently being upgraded to give us the extra capacity we so desperately need.

“The new scanner will offer many benefits to our patients, including being larger to give a more pleasant patient experience, higher resolution images and the latest scanning capabilities, including cardiac MRI imaging which our patients currently travel to Stoke for.

“The MRI service currently undertakes over 30,000 diagnostic scans every year and demand continues to grow for this fantastic imaging facility. The MRI team look forward to offering our patients a top quality MRI service made possible by this investment.”

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses strong magnetic fields and radio waves to produce detailed images of the inside of the body. An MRI scan can be used to examine almost any part of the body. The results of an MRI scan can be used to help diagnose conditions, plan treatments and assess how effective previous treatment has been.