TUSTIN, Calif., July 21, 2015 – Enabling healthcare facilities to develop and expand programs that deliver quality patient care, AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management and Toshiba announce the eighth year of its Putting Patients First Program. Putting Patients First grants enable healthcare facilities to fund programs, training or seminars aimed at improving patient care and safety and customizing treatment in CT, MR, Ultrasound, X-ray and Vascular imaging. The grants are funded by an unrestricted educational grant from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.

The AHRA & Toshiba Putting Patients First Program provides six grants of up to $7,500 each to hospitals and imaging centers, and an additional grant of up to $20,000 to an Integrated Delivery Network (IDN). Three of the $7,500 grants are awarded for projects that improve pediatric imaging, while the other three are awarded for projects that improve overall patient care and safety in imaging. The grant of up to $20,000 is awarded to an IDN or hospital system for projects that improve overall patient care and safety in imaging across the IDN/hospital system. All winning facilities will then develop and share their best practices.

“The Putting Patients First grants provide healthcare facilities with critical resources to help enhance patient care,” said David Fox, CRA, FAHRA, president, AHRA. “Since the Putting Patients First Program’s inception, it has offered $425,000 to winning facilities that support projects to improve diagnostic imaging by reducing radiation, focusing on education or improving the patient experience.”
Putting Patients First applicants are judged on their program plan and ability to share best practices. The applicants’ programs should address one or more of the following:

Reducing radiation and/or contrast dose
Reducing the need for sedation
Improving communication with patients regarding the process
Improving patient comfort
Improving the overall clinical pathway
“We support the needs of healthcare providers to deliver safe and quality patient care by providing 360 degrees of coverage, guidance and expertise,” said Cathy Wolfe, senior director, Corporate and Strategic Communications, Toshiba. “At Toshiba, we believe that safety goes beyond just managing radiation dose, as an example, to other areas of patient and staff safety. Through the Putting Patients First program, we are making it possible for healthcare facilities to implement and support new programs and training to improve safety across all imaging modalities and then share those best imaging practices with other providers.”

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