The ACR awards accreditation to facilities that have achieved high practice standards after a peer-review evaluation.
“Our hard work to receive ACR accreditation is one way we at Halifax Regional demonstrate putting patients first and continue to provide the highest quality care and safety,” said William Navarro, radiology director.
CT scanning, also called “CAT scan” is a noninvasive medical test that helps diagnose and tailor treatments for various medical conditions. The CT Accreditation Program involves submission of clinical and phantom images, dose measurements and scanning protocols.
Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose and treat a variety of disease, including many types of cancers, heart disease, and certain other abnormalities within the body. The Nuclear Medicine Accreditation Program involves acquisition of clinical and phantom images and corresponding data for each unit.
Taking the lead for the evaluation project by ACR was Jeremy Proctor, nuclear medicine technologist and Donna Pulley, CT technologist.
"I’m extremely proud of these teams for their accomplishments, and I would like to send special thanks to both Donna Pulley and Jeremy Proctor for taking lead roles in these projects,” said Navarro. “The accreditation process is challenging and requires meticulous attention to detail.”
The ACR gold seal of accreditation represents the highest level of image quality and patient safety.
It is awarded only to facilities meeting ACR Practice Guidelines and Technical Standards after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field. Image quality, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control procedures, and quality assurance programs are assessed.
The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report they can use for continuous practice improvement.
All of Halifax Regional’s radiology departments — Nuclear Medicine, Ultrasound, MRI, CT and Mammography — are now accredited by the ACR.
