British Breast Screening Service chooses Sectra MicroDose: “We have increased the efficiency of our screening operation substantially”

Warwickshire, Solihull & Coventry Breast Screening Service (WSCBSS), which installed its first Sectra MicroDose system in 2005, has now invested in another two systems. With the new units, WSCBSS will become one of the first NHS-operated breast screening services in the UK to provide a fully direct digital mammography screening service.

WSCBSS is part of the national breast screening program in the UK. The service operates three mobile screening trailers all equipped with Sectra MicroDose as well as assessment and symptomatic services. In total, the service performs approximately 40,000 examinations per year.

WSCBSS operates Sectra’s total solution for digital mammography, comprising Sectra MicroDose Mammography and Sectra Breast Imaging PACS (system for managing and archiving digital breast images). The Sectra Breast Imaging PACS is integrated with the UK’s NBSS (National Breast Screening System) so that appointments are scheduled, work-lists generated and reporting is performed with both systems automatically synchronised. The solution enables an efficient screening workflow at the lowest possible dose level.

“We have increased the efficiency of our screening operation substantially,” says Margot Wheaton, Programme Manager. As well as reducing the radiation dose to a minimum and providing excellent image quality, our initial Sectra MicroDose Mammography system also allowed us to reduce the appointment times per client required for screening”. “With Sectra MicroDose, we can screen a client every five minutes throughout the day, which lets us keep to the screening schedule. With the two new systems, we now have the capacity to manage the 20% increase in workload during first phase of the extension of the screening age range”, she continues.

“WSCBSS has an excellent reputation within the breast screening community and their decision to further invest in our MicroDose system confirms that we have succeeded in meeting the high requirements of screening services”, says Neil Emery, Commercial Manager of Sectra in the UK and Ireland. “The fact that our equipment can also be placed on existing trailers rather than requiring customers to buy specially built new trailers also makes the complete solution very cost effective”.


About Warwickshire, Solihull & Coventry Breast Screening Service
Warwickshire, Solihull & Coventry Breast Screening Service started screening in 1989. 40,000 women are invited per annum on a three-year cycle. The screening programme is the fifth largest in the UK and regularly achieves National outcome targets. WSCBSS, part of the University Hospitals Coventry & Warwickshire NHS Trust, host the National Breast Screening Computer Training Centre and are thus responsible for development, piloting and training for the UK's National Breast Screening Computer System.

For further information, please contact:
Jan Wolffram, Managing Director, Sectra Ltd. Tel +44 1908 673 107

About Sectra’s medical operations
Sectra develops and sells IT-systems and products for radiology, mammography and orthopaedic departments. More than 1,000 hospitals worldwide use the system daily, together performing over 50 million radiology examinations annually. This makes Sectra one of the world leading companies within systems for handling digital radiology images (PACS). In Scandinavia, Sectra is the market leader with more than 50% of all film-free installations. Outside Scandinavia, Sectra’s system is installed at customers in North America and most major countries in Europe and the Far East.

About the Sectra Group
Sectra successfully develops and sells cutting-edge products in the expansive niche segments of medical systems and secure communication systems. The company was founded in 1978 and has its roots in the Linköping Institute of Technology in Sweden. Today, Sectra has offices in twelve countries and operates through partners worldwide. Sales in the 2008/2009 fiscal year totaled SEK 863 million. The Sectra share is quoted on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm AB exchange. For more information, visit www.sectra.com.