Sonja Wehsely, executive vice president CEECA Siemens Healthineers: The MAGNETOM Flow is the first plug-and-play 1,5T MRI scanner ever and can improve access to healthcare
Siemens Healthineers, the medical technology branch of the German multinational, recently launched its newest MRI scanner, the MAGNETOM Flow, during an event held in Bucharest on April 24. Featured in one of the panels during the event,…
Siemens Healthineers, the medical technology branch of the German multinational, recently launched its newest MRI scanner, the MAGNETOM Flow, during an event held in Bucharest on April 24. Featured in one of the panels during the event, Sonja Wehsely, executive vice president CEECA Siemens Healthineers, highlighted the strengths of the new scanner.
Wehsely, who has been with Siemens Healthineers for over 7 years, has been talking about AI in healthcare and imaging for years. She says her personal goal is to improve the lives of 8 billion people by easing access to healthcare services.
During the panel, Wehsely underscored the pivotal role of technology in enhancing healthcare services. She mentioned that AI, in addition to supporting doctors, plays a crucial role in healthcare sustainability, a concept that extends beyond energy conservation. She further emphasized the importance of retaining healthcare professionals in Romania for long-term service provision.
The Siemens Healthineers executive VP also noted that innovation leads to better outcomes and lower costs in healthcare. For her, innovation is not only just about funding. Instead, different mindsets can be used to better tackle emerging needs. New technology, such as the easy-to-use MAGNETOM Flow scanner, can come to ease the lack of radiology specialists, for example. The massive and expensive conventional MRI machines, which in the past required large funds, can also be supplanted by the plug-and-play MAGNETOM Flow, can also travel between locations if needed. The scanner is also less than 2 meters in height, 24 square meters in footprint and does not need a quench pipe.
Sonja Wehsely also sat down with Romania Insider to answer a few more questions regarding the innovative scanner, the first of which will be installed at the Dorna Medical Center in Borsa, Maramures, northern Romania, in June 2024.
How is the MAGNETOM Flow different from other systems like the MAGNETOM Free.Star?
The important difference is that it uses a field of 1.5 Tesla but with almost no helium. Normally, an MRI has about 1,000l of helium, which is costly and can cause some problems. If the cooling does not work properly, you have to put in the entire amount of liquid helium again. The MAGNETOM Flow uses only 0.7l of liquid helium, like a small bottle. It is much more cost-efficient, much more sustainable, and it is much easier to install. With a normal MRI, the room preparation is much more expensive and has to have an area where you can let out helium. You don’t need that here, you can put this MRI everywhere, plug-and-play, and that is the first MRI where this is possible.
The previous MAGNETOM Free.Star scanners could be fitted into containers for greater accessibility. Do you have the same plans for this system?
