Making an impact in mobile ultrasound
While the diagnostic imaging technology is increasing in use, there is a great inequality in access to medical imaging [2]. At Trice Imaging, we want to address this inequality. It is at the core of what we do – quality of care for people regardless of who and where they are. Medical Ultrasound Awareness Month is an important occasion to raise more awareness to the lack of access to medical imaging in the world and show the impact of mobile ultrasound.
Ultrasound is an inexpensive, noninvasive, and multifunctional tool, and access to it can make the difference between life and death [4]. Approximately 3.5 – 4.7 billion individuals are lacking access to medical imaging, globally [1]. Meaning, 2 in 3 people worldwide lack access to basic medical imaging technology such as ultrasound [2].
Hope is on the horizon.
Point-of-care ultrasound is growing, handheld and mobile ultrasound devices are becoming cheaper, and global connectivity is increasing in wireless cellular and internet connection. With more affordable equipment and improved ease of use, it is high time to close the gap in access to medical imaging technology around the world.
Using Trice’s cloud-based platform, Tricefy, for medical image sharing and management, together with portable ultrasound devices, medical professionals can save time and lives for populations living in rural areas. By facilitating a faster transfer of ultrasound exam results, we could avoid transferring patients, saving valuable time to care for trauma patients, detect high-risk pregnancies and ultimately save lives. We are convinced our solution can support closing the gap in access to medical imaging around the world.
Mobile ultrasound requires mobile technologies
We aim to use our technology to improve health care globally while incorporating what we learned into future releases. We are currently active in several mobile ultrasound impact projects around the world. At Trice we are always looking for new areas where our technology could simplify medical processes and improve health care around the globe. Do you want to be a part of our projects?
Get in touch with us to become a project partner.
A project dear to our hearts
Expanding Access to Vital Cardiac Ultrasounds to treat RHD in East Timor
Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) has been almost non-existent in most of Australia for the last five decades – except among 3-5% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians in remote areas where poverty and lack of primary healthcare have contributed to keeping RHD in existence.
Together with NT Cardiac, Dr. Bo Remenyi and Associate Professor Josh Francis at the Menzies School of Health Research have been working on a project to expand the use of these vital cardiac ultrasounds in these communities by extending the training.
Earlier this year, the pilot program in East Timor began training doctors and nurses in performing echocardiograms using handheld devices and uploading the images to the Tricefy ultrasound cloud. Specialists from locations across Australia and East Timor can see the images in close to real-time and meet weekly for case discussions.
Risks and signs of RHD can be detected at an early stage and be treated and prevented with basic healthcare with only a 2-minute ultrasound heart scan. Through the cloud-based connectivity with Tricefy, specialists from locations across Australia and East Timor can assure that the rural communities have access to the quality of care they need. We’re extremely proud to provide a vital element of connectivity that will make a direct impact on the healthcare needs of children.
“This is a disease we can definitely get rid of in my lifetime,” says Dr. Bo Remenyi.
Learn more about this incredible endeavor and why it warms our hearts.
Mobile Ultrasound Project: Morocco
“Ultrasounds for expecting mothers should be a human right.”
In the three small villages of rural Morocco, Oulmes, Boulmane and Ribat el Kheir, we worked in health houses, which are similar to a small medical practices. These rural clinics had no computers, health records, or Internet access. Although the clinical conditions in these facilities were poor compared to more privileged parts of the world, our technology worked flawlessly, thanks to the great mobile coverage in the area. The midwives and nurses in the villages were very engaged when teaching them how to use the technology, and they welcomed us with open arms. The expecting mothers also showed enthusiasm by arriving in droves to receive an ultrasound and see their unborn babies for the first time.
A professional diagnosis makes a big difference in medical care for these women as we can detect conditions such as placenta previa and the baby position with ultrasound. These conditions might jeopardize the health and ultimately the life of both the mother and the baby. Other conditions that lead to permanent damage to basic human functions, such as urination (fistula), can also be prevented.
Using the Trice medical image routing platform, we sent images, videos, and reports via WiFi to reviewing clinics in Casablanca, Fes, and Paris. By facilitating a faster transfer of ultrasound exam results, we could avoid transferring patients – saving valuable time to detect high-risk pregnancies, and ultimately saving lives.
Learn more about the Morocco project and what we learned along the way.
References:
- Everton KL, Mazal J, Mollura DJ; RAD-AID Conference Writing Group. White paper report of the 2011 RAD-AID Conference on International Radiology for Developing Coun- tries: integrating multidisciplinary strategies for imaging ser- vices in the developing world. J Am Coll Radiol. 2012 Jul;9(7):488-94. doi: 10.1016/j.jacr.2012.01.005. PMID: 22748790; PMCID: PMC4844552.
- Morris, M.A., Saboury, B. (2019). Access to Imaging Technology in Global Health. In: Radiology in Global Health, 15-33. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-98485-8_3
- Britton N, Miller MA, Safadi S, Siegel A, Levine AR, McCurdy MT. Tele-Ultrasound in Resource-Limited Settings: A Systematic Review. Front Public Health. 2019 Sep 4;7:244. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00244. PMID: 31552212; PMCID: PMC6738135.
- Image: Categorical choropleth map of rural, urbanized, and metro counties (Peterman NJ, Yeo E, Kaptur B, Smith EJ, Christensen A, Huang E, Rasheed M. Analysis of Rural Disparities in Ultrasound Access. Cureus. 2022 May 28;14(5):e25425. doi: 10.7759/cureus.25425. PMID: 35774712; PMCID: PMC9236672.
