Hospital Rules You Must Know

One of them is this: if you are not the patient, do not ever enter the room where an MRI procedure is being performed, even if a hospital staff member invites you to do so.

For those who are not familiar with an MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging procedure, it is an advanced diagnostic tool that is able to see things that regular x-rays, and even CT scans, cannot.

What is MRI?

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique that uses a magnetic field and computer-generated radio waves to create detailed images of the organs and tissues in your body.

Most MRI machines are large, tube-shaped magnets. When you lie inside an MRI machine, the magnetic field inside works with radio waves and hydrogen atoms in your body to create cross-sectional images — like slices in a loaf of bread.

The MRI machine also can produce 3D images that can be viewed from different angles.

Why is MRI used?

MRI is a noninvasive way for a medical professional to examine your organs, tissues and skeletal system. It produces high-resolution images of the inside of the body that help diagnose a variety of conditions.

What most patients, and their family and friends, do not realize, is that the magnetic field that is so helpful to the diagnostic process is incredibly and surprisingly strong, and can produce disastrous results when metal objects come near it.

A recent case in point: a man whose wife was undergoing an MRI entered the MRI suite while she was undergoing the procedure. Unfortunately, he was wearing a heavy metal chain around his neck, and was violently pulled into the MRI machine, injuring him severely. He died soon after from his injuries.

This was an avoidable tragedy that never should have happened.

Whether it is called medical malpractice or medical negligence does not matter. The lesson here is that even at the best hospitals, patients cannot rely on the medical staff alone to keep themselves, and their loved ones, safe. Please do not ever go into an MRI suite while a patient is undergoing the procedure, even if it appears that there is a break in the action, i.e., to re-position the patient. The only people in the MRI suite should be the patient and the technicians. And, if you notice, most of the time the technicians leave the room while the procedure is taking place.

Clearly, hospitals and MRI facilities need to improve on their safety messaging to the public. But until they do, forewarned is forearmed. Stay out.