Grant: Doctoral: Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships

Ultrasound imaging is essential for many medical diagnoses; however, this imaging modality is not available in many northern and remote communities because of a lack of on-site sonographers and radiologists. An emerging solution to increase access to ultrasound imaging is telerobotic sonography. Telerobotic ultrasound systems allow sonographers or radiologists based at a central site to remotely perform ultrasound examinations, allowing patients to receive the care they need in their home community and avoid transport to another facility. The objective of my research is to determine whether a robotic ultrasound clinic is a viable model to increase access to ultrasound imaging for patients in northern and remote communities. I will explore the lived experiences and perceived needs of northern Indigenous community members in accessing ultrasound imaging through interviews. I will then use these findings to inform the design and implementation of a pilot remote robotic ultrasound clinic in a northern Canadian Indigenous community which does not have access to local ultrasound services. I will evaluate the effect of this clinic on patient management and ultrasound imaging utilization, determine best practices for establishing a robotic ultrasound clinic, and conduct a cost analysis comparing a robotic ultrasound clinic and a conventional ultrasound clinic to which patients must travel. Finally, using provincial ultrasound imaging utilization data, I will use spatial analysis and GIS mapping to determine where additional supports for ultrasound imaging are most needed, with a view to scale up the proposed robotic ultrasound clinic model. Findings from this research will inform the development of robotic ultrasound clinics, enabling more patients to receive ultrasound imaging in their home community. This may reduce time to diagnosis and treatment, improve health outcomes and patient satisfaction, reduce strain on major referral hospitals, and reduce healthcare costs.