January 28, 2015 — Seven leading healthcare providers were selected as recipients of 2014 Putting Patients First grants and now, using these grants, can create or expand education and training to improve the patient experience and safety in diagnostic imaging.
In the seventh year of the grant program, AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management (AHRA) and Toshiba America Medical Systems Inc. awarded one grant of up to $20,000 to an Integrated Delivery Network (IDN)/hospital system and six grants of up to $7,500—three focused on pediatrics and three on overall patient care.
The IDN grant has been awarded to:
- Nemours Children’s Health System (Orlando, Fla.) – will create an interactive application to be used at the point of care to reduce anxiety and provide patients and their family members with more detailed information on upcoming diagnostic exams.
Pediatric and overall care grants have been awarded to:
- Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (Los Angeles) – will review computed tomography (CT) exam history to determine ways to increase the utilization of Rapid-Sequence MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and reduce radiation exposure for the evaluation of hydrocephalus in pediatric patients.
- SUNY Upstate University Hospital (Syracuse, N.Y.) – will create a child-friendly environment in its fluoroscopy and nuclear medicine rooms to reduce radiation dosage and sedation usage, and increase patient and family satisfaction.
- University of Maryland Medical System (Baltimore) – will create a new training program to teach its radiology technologists how to approach and interact with children undergoing medical imaging.
- Ozarks Community Hospital of Gravette (Gravette, Ark.) – will establish a comprehensive pediatric program called KidSTRONG to reduce radiation dose, improve comfort and increase understanding of procedures for both patients and parents.
- Providence Healthcare Network (Waco, Texas) – will integrate an “implant alert” into its electronic medical record system to improve the screening process and safety of patients undergoing MRI.
- Metrohealth System (Cleveland) – will research the issue of “alarm fatigue,” where technologists become desensitized to the constant noise during MRI exams and miss critical warnings.
In addition to receiving the grants, all winning programs will be featured in an AHRA publication. The Putting Patients First program is funded by an unrestricted educational grant from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.
For more information: www.ahraonline.org; www.medical.toshiba.com
July 31, 2026 
