NYC Health + Hospitals investing $20M to expand radiology services across city
The country’s largest municipal healthcare system is investing over $20 million to expand radiology services across New York City.
NYC Health + Hospitals said it is introducing comprehensive imaging services at multiple locations across all five boroughs. Its new initiative aims to expand access to radiology offerings including MR, CT, ultrasound, X-ray, mammogram and DEX, bringing them “directly into the community.”
The 11-hospital healthcare system believes “strategically situating” radiology services in underserved communities will help eliminate barriers to care, reduce wait times and detect diseases earlier. NYC Health + Hospitals—which serves over 1 million New Yorkers annually, across 70 care sites—expects to see a 20% increase in patient visits annually, following the upgrades.
This will result in the hospital system reaching another 42,500 visits annually via its enhancements, “substantially boosting community access to vital diagnostic resources.”
“The addition of radiology services ensures our patients receive accurate and convenient diagnostic care without unnecessary travel or delays,” CEO Michelle Lewis said in an Oct. 30 announcement. “This significant investment underscores our unwavering commitment to equitable, patient-focused healthcare throughout New York City.”
NYC Health + Hospitals did not disclose the cost of the radiology expansion, but Crain’s New York Business placed the price tag at approximately $20 million. The health system notes that it uses an integrated approach to imaging, ensuring “seamless” care coordination, quicker scan results, reduced wait times and streamlined treatment. New radiology locations include three in the Bronx, three more in Brooklyn, two in Manhattan, one in Queens, and another on Staten Island.
In a separate announcement shared Monday, NYC Health + Hospitals also touted the completion of “major” renovations at one of its “busiest radiology rooms.” The health system has invested over $450,000 to improve X-ray services at its Elmhurst Hospital, a 545-bed, level 1 trauma center in Queens.
The upgrades include installing a new state-of-the-art GE HealthCare radiography machine, also used for fluoroscopy procedures. With the upgrades, Elmhurst image to serve an additional 15,000 patients per year, serving both emergency room visitors and inpatients.
Elmhurst Hospital performs approximately 100,000 X-rays annually. It notes that the new scanner will produce clearer images at lower radiation does, allowing NYC Health + Hospitals radiologists to make faster, more accurate diagnoses. The project is part of numerous imaging upgrades at the hospital, which also have included updated mammography rooms, a new nuclear scanner, and the addition of a mobile MRI unit.
“This project is part of our ongoing plans to reconstruct Elmhurst Hospital for the 21st century and ensure that our community has access to the latest and most advanced radiology equipment,” Elmhurst Hospital CEO Helen Arteaga-Landaverde, PhD, MPH, said in a Nov. 3 announcement.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.