New Endoscopes for NWT Hospitals

Blog Post

In August, Stanton Territorial Hospital and Inuvik Regional Hospital received upgrades to their endoscopy equipment. Hay River Regional Health Centre is the third site that received the new technology at the end of October.

The new endoscopy equipment for cancer screening was purchased through the Department of Health and Social Service (DHSS)’s medical equipment evergreening program, which replaces old equipment with new on a planned cycle.

The new equipment is the latest technology from Fujifilm that was selected through a competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process.  It includes:

  • High definition (HD) flexible scopes (colonoscopes and gastroscopes) that provide high resolution images, are easier to grip and control (or ‘drive’) by the physician performing the exam and maneuver more easily through the body than previous generation technology
  • More light modes for imaging including white light, blue light and linked colour imaging that improve visualization of areas of concern, such as polyps, during colonoscopies
  • ‘CADEYE’ artificial intelligence (AI) software that enhances polyp detection and characterization during colonoscopies

Additional loaner scopes that are typically sent from the vendor when a scope requires repair are now being housed ‘on site’ at Stanton Territorial Hospital as part of this evergreening project.  They can be used in any of the territory’s three facilities with endoscopy clinics when a scope needs repair, to minimize equipment disruptions to the endoscopy service in the future.

Lee Van Ruskenveld from the Inuvik Regional Hospital says, “Having high-quality endoscopes is a large factor for the people of the Northwest Territories to receive quality, competent care.”