Sheppey Diagnostic Centre welcomes new MRI scanner

A new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner has been installed at Medway NHS Foundation Trust’s multi-million pound Community Diagnostic Centre in Sheppey.

The four-tonne machine is set to go live in the spring, marking the second phase of the centre’s opening after it launched earlier this winter with Computerised Tomography (CT) scanning.

Based at Sheppey Community Hospital in Minster, the addition of the MRI scanner will significantly enhance diagnostic capabilities at the centre, which is helping to provide a range of vital tests and scans closer to home, for patients on the Isle of Sheppey, in Sittingbourne, and elsewhere in Swale.

In Medway and Swale, patients have access to two Community Diagnostic Centres, with the other located at the Healthy Living Centre in Rochester. Since opening, the centres have delivered thousands of diagnostic tests, including CT scans, ultrasound scans, as well respiratory and cardiology services.

Both sites are staffed by Medway NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Medway Maritime Hospital in Gillingham and the Frailty Unit at Sheppey Community Hospital. Work will continue to develop the centres throughout 2025, with the aim of providing services up to seven days a week, and 12 hours a day, according to demand.

Lorraine Becconsall, Head of Imaging at Medway NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Once fully operational, the MRI will offer hundreds of extra scans every month to patients across Swale, to help diagnose different conditions and ensure they receive the appropriate care and treatment.

“We are very proud to operate the diagnostic centres in both Sheppey and Rochester, with our dedicated NHS colleagues at the heart of services they provide, and we hope they will have a big impact in months and years to come.”