Newswise — Small patients normally do not fit into standard medical practice—young children are naturally active, making tasks as simple as performing an X-ray problematic for pediatric radiology professionals around the country. Columbus Children's Hospital has invented a unique device to replace the Pigg-o-stat®, a less effective apparatus currently used throughout the United States to restrain a child in an upright position for radiological examination. The new Columbus Pediatric Radiography Board was designed to improve film quality and patient comfort.
The Columbus Board is a lightweight, stable, transparent positioning board that can accommodate many types of examinations, as well as children of a wide range of ages and sizes. Patients are positioned once with the Columbus Board and remain in one place during the exam while equipment is moved around them for multiple film exposures. The Columbus Board provides meticulous detail in examinations. The quality of films produced by the conventional Pigg-o-stat® is inconsistent, frequently with artificial images that mimic pneumonia.
The Columbus Board not only enables a more efficient exam that produces higher quality films, but is also more comfortable and visually appealing to patients and their families. A parent gently holds a child in a designated position with the Columbus Board, actively communicating with him or her to help relieve anxiety during an examination. This system increases parental presence by allowing a parent to be an active part of the healthcare team and process. The Pigg-o-stat® does not hurt a child but its appearance is often threatening to parents and the device can be cumbersome to radiology personnel.
"The consistent positive parent response that we see with the use of the Columbus Board underscores the fact that customer service goes beyond simply 'service' in pediatric health care and clearly is an issue of exceptional patient and family care," said William E. Shiels, D.O., chief, Children's Department of Radiology. "The innovative team of technologists at Columbus Children's identified a pediatric health care problem, created a solution and accepted a national leadership role in improving care for children."
The Columbus Pediatric Radiography Board is now available for purchase at http://store.yahoo.com/columbuschildrens-store/coperabo1.html
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