Posted on 01/22/2016 3:41:34 PM PST by afraidfortherepublic
Waukesha - The sight of a terrified little girl about to have an MRI scan gave Doug Dietz a different perspective on his work as an industrial designer at GE Healthcare - and led to a project that has turned imaging departments at 27 children's hospitals into small theme parks.
The idea that eventually emerged from a mix of brainstorming and research - with some persistence thrown in - was to transform a frightening medical test into a voyage on a spaceship, a visit to a pirate island and other adventures.
Imaging departments became elaborate sets. Technicians became amateur actors with scripts. And children were given starring roles.
"Children would cling to their mom's leg and start crying, and you would have to pry them off," said Kathleen Kapsin, radiology director of Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, part of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "Now they walk in and they are excited."
Imagine being a 6-year-old child about to be fed into the bore of a large, noisy machine and then being told not to move for 10 minutes, 30 minutes or longer.
That's what computerized tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography — commonly known as CT, MRI and PET scans — entail.
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
An MRI system at the University of California San Francisco Benioff Children's Hospital features a cable car theme.
GE Healthcare industrial designers Erik Kemper (left) and Doug Dietz helped develop the idea of transforming the often-frightening process of MRI and CT scans into an adventure for children
GE Medical designers come up with way to take the fear out of CT, MRI, and PET scans for children. There is good still happening in this world.
FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.
How about some for us big kids!
You could always ask for a coloring book and crayons.
Pretty clever.
No kidding!
I’ve known adults that had to be sedated to go through an MRI.
I wouldnt get a ct scan if they had unicorns pooping out skittles. That is hundreds to over a thousand, depending, amount of radiation of a regular xray. Not insignificant.
Mris are the wonderful way to go. It is nice if they can hit your vein the first time with the dye.
Great post... nice to know there’s still good people out there...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.