Orthopaedic and spinal surgery specialist Charlie Sale who leads the team of clinicians at Oakwood Referrals, pictured with Ruby and the permanent on-site MRI scanner.
Oakwood Veterinary Referrals Unveils MRI Scanner In Major Boost For Poorly Pets
9 months ago 
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A VETERINARY centre in Cheshire has been boosted by a major investment that will allow poorly pets to be assessed swiftly.
Oakwood Veterinary Referrals now boasts its own permanent on-site MRI scanner so the team can acquire high resolution images of pets of all sizes without delay.
The specialist-led centre at Willows Veterinary Hospital in Hartford near Northwich has also taken on two radiographers to further enhance its patient care.
The GE Sigma 1.5 Tesla highfield MRI scanner will primarily be used for diagnosis of referred cases with neurological, orthopaedic, soft tissue, and internal medicine issues.
Oakwood Referrals previously had access to a scanner which visited each week but having their own scanner permanently on site means minimal waiting time for vet practices and pet owners, from the point of referral to the first appointment.
The investment for the scanner and trailer in which it is housed comes from VetPartners, the larger veterinary group of which Oakwood Referrals is a part.
Highfield scanners produce higher resolution images than lowfield ones and reduce the time taken to acquire images, which benefits pets as they undergo general anaesthetic for an MRI scan.
Orthopaedic and spinal surgery specialist Charlie Sale leads the team of clinicians at Oakwood Referrals. He said: “This is a significant milestone for Oakwood Referrals which celebrates its 25th anniversary next year and we are very grateful to VetPartners for their investment support.
“Having the MRI scanner permanently on site improves our service to the vets who refer patients to us. Pets will benefit because there will be more availability of appointments so they will be seen and have an MRI scan quickly.
“Not every case can wait a few days for a scan. Having the availability of the MRI scanner all the time improves our service enormously as it means we can tailor the investigation and management of a case to the individual patient’s requirements much better than only having a visiting MRI.
“We always perform a clinical assessment first to ensure the provisional diagnosis is correct, and we need to know where to scan. Once we have acquired the images, we can decide what form of management is best.”
Mr Sale has more than 25 years of experience in orthopaedic and spinal referrals and is an RCVS and EBVS (European Board of Veterinary Specialists) recognised specialist in Small Animal Surgery.
Oakwood Veterinary Referrals is part of the RSA Referral Vet Network and offers referrals in orthopaedic surgery, spinal surgery, soft tissue surgery, internal medicine, cardiology and dermatology.
As well as the on-site MRI scanner, the centre also has three operating theatres, digital X-ray imaging suites and a CT scanner.
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