MidState group opens radiology facility
Marianne Cardona leaves her appointment at MidState Medical Group.
Posted: 17 June 2009
WALLINGFORD – They’re handing out roses at MidState Radiology Associates, or at least they were on Tuesday.
Marianne Cardona received a pink rose for being one of the first to undergo a mammogram at the new building in the Stop & Shop Plaza.
Radiology was the first service to open, on Monday, at the 48,000 square-foot, three story building. A walk-in clinic run by the MidState Medical Group is scheduled to open June 27, followed by occupational therapy. The building will also house comprehensive orthopedics and physical therapy run by Eastern Rehabilitation Network, set to open July 24.
A cancer survivor, the 52-year-old Cardona gets a check-up every year. She called the new place “a big improvement.”
“I was very happy,” she said. “It’s very convenient.”
MidState is hoping more Wallingford residents share the sentiment. The town is one of the major service areas for the hospital, which faces stiff competition from New Haven hospitals. MidState is consolidating most Wallingford services in a high-profile location, at 863 N. Main St. Ext.
There may not be roses for every patient, but radiology is going to great effort to make the experience as welcoming as possible, including establishing a separate entrance and privacy-centered experience for women. A Zen wall fountain in the waiting area and paintings throughout are designed to create a warm atmosphere.
There’s also what adds up to about a $5 million investment, said Dr. Gary J. Dee, a radiologist.
“We were waiting until we had the space to put all this equipment,” he said.
The equipment includes a stationary, open MRI that can handle patients up to 550 pounds. At Barnes Road, radiology used a mobile MRI four days a week, and while it was an open MRI patients still had to climb into the trailer, said Dee.
“Now it’s a much better flow,” he said. “We can see a lot more patients.”
A 16-slice CT scan replaces a four-slice machine, meaning faster scans and less radiation. There are also two ultrasound machines, two digital x-ray rooms, digital mammography and a machine that examines bone density.
“It’s the best technology you can get,” said Eileen Noble, radiology director.
There’s also a nuclear medicine room, with a gamma camera that looks at the body on a molecular level and is useful, for example, in determining whether a cancer has spread, said Dr. Sherwin Borsuk.
A dozen employees work at the radiology center, many have been with the service a long time, said Bette Ann Calatayud, the manager.
“I think patients like the fact that they see the same faces all the time,” she said.
Borsuk said the move was like the difference between renting and owning your own home.
“It’s really exciting, we never really got to decorate,” said Noble, who was responsible for the wall fountain.
As for the artwork? “I bought it at tag sales,” said Borsuk.
The walk-in clinic is set up in a way similar to MidState’s Medi Quick service on Pomeroy Ave. in Meriden, drawing patients with non-emergency injuries or illnesses. The new set up features five patient rooms, and will operate Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. The clinic receives about 15,000 visits each year at Church Street, and the expectation is the same number will be served at the new location.
“This building is set up so that it’s seamless care for patients,” said Amy Lieberman, the business development manager for the MidState Medical Group. “Our doctors can evaluate them and send them across for x-ray and they’ll be fast tracked at Radiology Associates.”
“It’s going to be great for our patients,” she said. “It’s really one-stop shopping for people in the Wallingford community.”
Submitted by Jeff Kurz on Wed, 06/17/2009 - 10:39
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