Three months since officials at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital upgraded the CT Scanner from a 1-Slice to an 8-Slice, patient waiting time has been reduced and reports returned faster.

A CT Scanner is a x-ray machine that beams light from several directions and can produce vivid images that allow doctors to diagnose problems without operating.

Until February, the hospital was struggling with only a 1-slice scanner, which was slow and limited in the imaging it could perform.

The 8-Slice CT Scanner allows the Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) to offer 3-D images rather than a flat 'slice' and new scans for diseases such as strokes, clots, cancers and vascular disorders.

As well as increasing quality, the new machine reduced waiting times with the average outpatient getting next day appointments rather than having to wait five to seven days and reports are now returned within 24 to 48 hours versus three to four days.

CT Scan Supervisor Earlington Raynor said the department was thrilled they are able to see and diagnose patients quickly.

He said: "We are truly excited to be able to offer a high quality service that means people requiring a scan are seen and diagnosed quickly.

"We understand that when people are referred for a CT scan they might feel nervous about the process and stressed about what might be found.

"The quality and speed of our new CT equipment and technology help us make the scan itself more comfortable and patients can be reassured that results will be turned around quickly."

Earlier this year the CEO of BHB David Hill said that the 8-Slice was only a temporary improvement that would be further upgraded when, he hoped, a 64-Slice machine replace it.

If that happens, it will then become the second 64-Slice machine on the Island following the recent addition to Premier Ewart Brown's Brown-Darrell clinic in January this year.

Dr. Daniel Stovell, Chief of Diagnostic Imaging said the 8-Slice Scanner at KEMH allowed the hospital to operate at an international level.

"We are now operating at an international standard of care with the quality and speed of our service," said Dr. Stovell.

"Our radiologists now read scans on a computer screen, rather than waiting for film to be developed. The quality of image is vastly enhanced by the digital process and it also allows us to manipulate images helping us diagnose potential illnesses or injuries."