DIDSBURY - Town council has agreed to provide a letter of support to Satori Health for Didsbury Medical Clinic to address the need for local teleradiology or ultrasound services to the College and Physicians & Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA).
The CPSA currently prevents this service being offered in Didsbury as it limits teleradiology in locations where there is another service within 100 kilometres of the location or requires that a radiologist be within 10 kilometres of the facility where the technology is occurring, said Ethan Gorner, the Town of Didsbury's chief administrative officer.
The matter was brought up during the March 8 council meeting, with council being asked to provide the letter of support to address the issue.
Teleradiology is the transmission of radiological patient images such as CTs and MRIs from one location to another for the purpose of examination of the images by physicians and others.
Patients in the Didsbury area are currently being sent to either Airdrie, Calgary or Red Deer to have these medical assessments completed, council heard.
Didsbury Medical Clinic has both the space and a diagnostic imaging partner who is willing to operate in the clinic if CPSA gives approval, council heard.
“For the elderly population of Didsbury, the travel distances can be quite difficult for them. Satori Health reviewed the demand of these services available within the 100-kilometre radius of Didsbury and determined that the community and the region would greatly benefit, if the clinic was able to add ultrasound services,” he said.
“They in turn would then be able to provide improved care in a safe and timely manner not just for Didsbury patients, but all patients in the area. The clinic has both the space and a diagnostic imaging partner who is willing to operate in the Didsbury Medical Clinic, if the CPSA were to allow teleradiology to occur in this location.”
CPSA is the physician regulator in Alberta responsible for overseeing the practice of medicine in the province. Alberta’s Health Professions Act grants privilege of profession-led regulation, which is carried out by CPSA.
