Carestream makes donation to RIT’s ultrasound program

Carestream Health Inc. has given RIT’s diagnostic medical sonography program ultrasound machines valued at more than $200,000.

The donation includes four premier and mid-tier ultrasound systems, transducers, simulators and related devices. The addition to the RIT sonography scanning suite enables students to practice on different models before beginning their clinical internships.

“Educating the next generation of sonographers is a community effort,” said Hamad Ghazle, director of RIT’s diagnostic medical sonography program. “Partners such as Carestream not only help RIT provide the healthcare market with well-rounded, well-educated, well-trained and experienced sonographers, but also compassionate leaders who make a difference in their communities.”

RIT’s diagnostic medical sonography program has an ongoing relationship with Carestream, a global manufacturer of medical imaging equipment and information systems. In 2015, Carestream donated $1 million in new ultrasound systems to the ultrasound suite created for the Clinical Health Sciences Center.

Diagnostic medical sonography is a noninvasive, nontoxic, diagnostic medical imaging modality. High-frequency sound waves are used to image the heart, blood flow and abdominal organs, as well as the developing fetus and reproductive organs.

Ultrasound has become a critical health care tool beyond radiology obstetrics and gynecology, vascular disease and cardiology, according to Ghazle. “It is now used in areas such as emergency medicine, orthopedics, sports medicine, ophthalmology, rheumatology, pain medicine, intensive care and much more,” he said. “The profession has grown rapidly in the last 10 years and is expected to continue to grow over the next several decades.”

RIT’s program is accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Diagnostic Medical Sonography of the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs. The BS-degree and certificate programs are housed in RIT’s College of Health Sciences and Technology and graduate around 40 students each year.

This gift is another contribution to Transforming RIT: The Campaign for Greatness, a $1 billion university fundraising effort.