Enhancing patient and staff experience in CT 

No one likes to go to the hospital and the CT lab. Almost everyone who comes to the facility feels stressed. In several cases, patients become confused and panicked, which raised their heart rate and made it hard to get accurate CT scanning results. Mr. Yutaka Suzuki (Section Chief, Radiology Department, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Medical Center), has always wanted to reduce patients’ stress to have more accurate test outcomes, but traditional approaches didn’t yield the effects Mr. Suzuki hoped for. Chief Technician Yasushi Unno also tried various approaches to achieve this without success.

With the introduction of Ambient Experience, they found a solution to create the ideal scanning environment for patients and relieve the burden on staff.

The Ambient Experience solution and the new Philips CT Iqon scanner were installed quickly and smoothly. Staff use a touchscreen to choose themes which are complemented by dynamic lighting, wall projection, ceiling displays and sound which create a relaxing environment. Nurse Mami Tokuhara says, “It’s our job to stay by patients’ sides and build trust. That’s a challenge that medical technology alone cannot overcome. The Ambient Experience themes help us immediately connect with them. Patients relax when they look at the selected theme, which makes the procedure go a lot more smoothly.” Once staff connect with patients by talking about the themes, it’s easier to tell when patients become mentally disoriented. It’s also easier for older patients who are reluctant to complain to tell staff when they feel sick. Yutaka Suzuki, Section Chief of the Radiology Department, reflected on the potential of Ambient Experience to improve patient visit rates, particularly for emotionally charged breast cancer screenings. He has requested new features, such as displaying examination instructions in multiple languages, to help non-Japanese-speaking patients relax and reduce staff burden, leading to more reliable examinations. Additionally, Suzuki desired the system to include themes depicting Japan's four seasons, aiming to provide entertainment value for long-term inpatients. He believes that Ambient Experience can make the CT examination experience easier for patients and more satisfying for staff.

The results have exceeded the Center’s expectations Many staff members report that communicating with patients is easier than ever. Some have even found that they are able to build trust with their patients more quickly.

“We wanted patients to relax during their examination so we could get acceptable results. At the same time, we wanted to reduce the burden on our staff,” says Dr. Keigo Shimoji, Manager, Radiology Department. “It was then that we were introduced to Ambient Experience, and we recognized that this could help us create the ideal scanning environment we were looking for.” Nurse Mami Tokuhara explains “It’s our job to stay by patients’ sides and build trust. That’s a challenge that medical technology alone cannot overcome. The Ambient Experience themes help us immediately connect with them."