I felt ill-prepared for ds's MRI

[expatkat]

No one told me, for example, to take off my watch while I was in the room with ds, holding his hand. The watch stopped, of course.

And no one told me if I was allowed to talk to ds or not, so I played it safe and sat there in virtual silence, as he grew ever more anxious.

And this MRI completely lacked that space-agey rocket-tube contraption thingey; the whole thing was wide open. We must have been magnetized to the hilt.

I had to sign a form to say I deffo wasn't pregnant and had no metal implants, so that much I knew.

But it all seemed sloppy. I really regretted having it done at that hospital; I hear bad enough things about it already.

Perhaps I should write a complaint?

what do you mean by it was wide open, My kids have had MRIs and the machine is in the middle of a room, and the patient go into a tunel.

Do it. You have a right to be told what to expect when you or your child go into hospital for any procedure!

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No tunnel, mieow. That's what I mean!

was it a brain scan?? I thought the tunnel was part of it, as it takes pics from all areas

It scanned his sinuses and adenoids. Totally localized. It had a sort of plastic-y mini "open" tunnel, i.e. a kind of skeleton of a tunnel. I don't know. It just made me uncomfortable.

(Though I acknowledge knowing NOTHING about these things.)

what hospital was it?

I thik my dad had a MRI done without the tunnel, and that was done at the same hospital as DD1 and DD2 scans, and they went into the tunnel so maybe it can be removed for different things

Portland

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I feel better to hear your possible explanation, mieow.

DS MRIs were done at GOS and that was a tunnel too as they all had brain scans, but the girls were done at our local hospital.

I was a radiographer in my earlier days and can tell you that there are a couple of different types of MRI scanners - the newer 'open' ones are supposed to be good for people who are claustrophobic/are too big to fit in the closed ones/children who could be scared in the closed ones. The magnetic force in the room is the same whether you are in a closed or open one, and there are no known side effects, however they take the precaution with pregnant women tho just in case.

It's a shame they didn't prepare you properly - you should have been encouraged to talk so that you could have kept him calm, tho it was essential that he didn't talk or move. I've had a couple of MRI scans in a research place as a guineapig and altho it wasn't the nicest experience (the machine is extra deep in research facilities so you really do disappear into it like a coffin), they see incredible detail that I'm sure will help your ds.
hth

I'd write and suggest that they prepare a little booklet aimed at parents or anxious people with some tips, pictures and frequently asked questions.

I took my ds for a bloodtest last week and I prepared him for every little part, but it was easy because I had bloodtests whilst pg, so I knew what to expect. I've also had an CT scan of my sinuses, but wouldn't know what to do about accompanying a child to have one.

Sell it by saying the scans will be quickly and less traumatic for the operators if the children and parents are more prepared.

That's reassuring fefifofum.

I'll take your advice kinderbob (& colditz).