Colonoscopy patients at Newark Hospital to benefit from charitable donation

Clinicians at Newark Hospital will be able to perform more accurate examinations on patients, thanks to a kind donation of £7,000 from the Friends of Newark Hospital.

The donation has enabled the CT department at Newark Hospital to purchase an insufflator machine, which works by safely delivering carbon dioxide into the body to inflate the large intestine and allows clinicians better access to view the area when a patient is receiving a CT scan. 

The device means that clinicians can detect lesions in the large colon without the need to insert a colonoscope (a flexible tube with a camera and a light on the end) into the area, making it a less invasive way of performing an examination of the colon.

Fiona Logue, CT Lead Radiographer, said: “We scan on average 25 patients per week for CT colonoscopy, and the introduction of the insufflator at Newark ensures patients can be scanned across sites and means they may now be scanned closer to home. It will also help to reduce the waiting times for CT colonoscopy within the trust.”

The Friends of Newark Hospital have been able to donate the funds using the profits from the refreshment bars at Newark Hospital. Nadia Whitworth, Chair of the Friends of Newark Hospital is pleased that the department has been able to purchase this new equipment and said: “I am delighted that we have been able to purchase this very worthwhile piece of equipment for the CT department at Newark Hospital. Anything to prevent an unnecessary invasive procedure is much more reassuring for our patients.”