Kahnawà:ke hospital ready to open new medical imaging department

Patients in Kahnawà:ke, south of Montreal, won't have to leave their community anymore to have an X-ray done.

The Kateri Memorial Hospital Centre opens its new medical imaging department this week. It's been a long awaited and demanded service for the Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) community, said Robin Guyer, director of nursing and community care.

"It will be very beneficial to our community members [and] the residents in the hospital to be able to offer this service here," said Guyer.

Before, residents of Kahnawà:ke — including elders who reside at the hospital — would have to use medical imaging services at Anna Laberge Hospital in Chateauguay, Que., or at clinics in surrounding municipalities.

Guyer said that was often challenging and increased the time between when a doctor requested the X-ray and receiving the results.

Now, elders and other patients just have to go down the hall.

"The fact that the whole health care system right now that we're living with is really overloaded… if we can alleviate some of those challenges and make things happen quicker for our community members, then that's great," she said.

Priority for Kahnawà:ke residents

The new service is a part of the hospital's recently completed expansion and renovation project. 

Signage throughout the department is written in Kanien'kéha (the Mohawk language), English and French. 

Jennifer Julien, medical imaging co-ordinator, was hired in February to develop policies and procedures for the department. She said she is looking forward to seeing the first patients use the machine.

"I know that when it comes to imaging, it could be a very, very scary time for patients," said Julien.

"If I can help them to alleviate some of that pressure… if I can make it a nice experience, I look forward to that."

The medical imaging department won't be limited to just X-rays. It will also have a new ultrasound machine, following a $139,000 donation from the Kateri Memorial Foundation earlier this summer.

For now, appointments are only available to residents of Kahnawà:ke two days a week. The hospital is planning how to best assess demand prior to extending services five days a week and to patients across the region.

"The mandate here is to service the needs of people from Kahnawà:ke," said Julien.

"At the end of the day, it really is going to be led by the needs of the community."