As the director of radiology at Unity Medical Center, my mission has always been clear: provide the safest, highest-quality imaging care possible for every patient.

In 2023, after attending an AHRA webinar on new CMS radiation safety and image quality requirements, I realized that our hospital, like many others, was not fully prepared for the evolving regulatory landscape. This realization sparked a journey that would transform our imaging protocols and our approach to patient-centered care.

During my search for a solution, I quickly discovered that many existing systems weren’t equipped to meet CMS mandates or lacked tools to provide actionable insights. It wasn’t until the AHRA 2024 Annual Meeting in Orlando that I encountered ProAqCT, a platform specifically designed to optimize radiation dose and image quality while supporting regulatory compliance.

ProAqCT offered the guidance and analytics our small hospital needed, but implementing a platform of this sophistication required financial support. Thankfully, the AHRA Putting Patients First Grant, generously sponsored by Canon Medical, provided $10,000 to offset costs and help make this project a reality. Without this funding, the implementation would have been much more challenging for a 14-bed Critical Access Hospital like ours.

The grant was not just a means of financial support; it was an affirmation that organizations like AHRA and Canon believe in investing in patient safety and innovation. I am deeply grateful for their confidence in our team and their commitment to advancing quality care. This funding enabled us to move forward quickly, provide necessary staff training, and engage with ProAqCT experts to ensure a smooth, effective rollout.

Implementing ProAqCT was not without challenges. From IT staffing constraints to hardware delays, every step required coordination and persistence. Training our technologists was critical. While some quickly adapted to the dashboard, others needed guidance to interpret dose metrics and real-time alerts. I vividly remember one technologist realizing, with the help of the platform, how small adjustments could dramatically improve patient safety. Moments like this reinforced why this work matters, directly protecting the health and well-being of our patients.

The impact has been measurable. ProAqCT monitors patient-specific doses, generates alerts for high-dose scans, and allows retrospective audits. Adjustments to our Routine Helical Head CT protocol, for instance, reduced the automatic mA by 10%, resulting in an 11% reduction in radiation dose without compromising image quality. Integration with Epic EHR further enables longitudinal tracking of radiation exposure, supporting informed clinical decisions.

Reflecting on this journey, it’s clear that technology alone isn’t enough — people and resources make the difference. The Putting Patients First grant was instrumental in driving this project, ensuring that our staff had the training, support, and tools necessary to succeed. I am profoundly grateful for the financial resources and trust provided by Canon and AHRA, which allowed us to lead with innovation, protect patients, and set a standard for quality imaging at a small hospital.

Ultimately, this initiative demonstrates that with the right combination of leadership, teamwork, and support from forward-thinking organizations, even a small hospital can achieve meaningful improvements in patient safety, imaging quality, and regulatory compliance. ProAqCT has empowered our team to deliver safer scans, improve diagnostic accuracy, and reassure our patients that their health is always our priority.

AHRA’s Putting Patients First Program, through the generous support of Canon Medical, seeks to improve patient care and safety in general medical imaging through an innovative grant-making program. Applications for the 2026 program are open and will close on Monday, November 24, 2025.