Blackrock Health, combining Blackrock, Hermitage, Galway and Limerick Clinics, has announced a €1.5 million investment in the Philips Spectral CT 7500, at Galway Clinic. The new system began scanning patients on 4th March 2025, offering innovative diagnostic capabilities.
The Philips Spectral CT 7500 provides a single spectral scan that delivers fast, confident diagnosis and expedited treatment times. Its detector-based spectral technology enhances care across radiology, cardiology, oncology, neurology, and emergency/ED trauma, delivering fast insights that can transform the patient care pathway.
Key benefits include:
- Faster, more accurate diagnosis: 34% decrease in overall time to diagnosis*
- Reduced need for follow-up scans
- Easy workflow: Just 2 seconds needed to complete a full chest-abdomen-pelvis scan
- Lower radiation dose with high-quality imaging
- Valuable clinical insights such as improved tissue characterisation and visualisation enabling a 50% or more IV contrast dose reduction across multiple clinical applications while maintaining or even improving image quality**
- Broad applicability across patient care needs
This investment reinforces Blackrock Health’s commitment to providing patients with the most advanced diagnostic technology, ensuring safer and more efficient care.
Commenting on the announcement, Dr. Declan Sheppard, Consultant Radiologist from Blackrock Health Galway Clinic said: "This investment in advanced technology is effectively a game changer for how we scan patients, get results and identify the subsequent course of treatment if applicable.
The spectral functionality of the new CT optimises diagnostic accuracy by allowing for better tissue and contrast characterisation, allowing substantially faster scanning, while simultaneously allowing for lower radiation dose imaging and the use of smaller volumes of contrast media. This “spectral bonus” improves patient care and reduces diagnostic uncertainty, while simultaneously benefiting the greater healthcare system."
Also commenting on the investment, Cecilia McGrath, CEO of Blackrock Health Galway Clinic, added: "This investment is part of a multi-million development plan for Galway Clinic, which will take the medical care and technology to another level for our medical care team and most importantly our patients".
David Murphy from Philips said: "We’re delighted to partner with the team at Blackrock Health. As healthcare becomes more complex, innovation is essential to enable faster clinical decisions, streamline workflows, and deliver value to both clinicians and patients. The Philips Spectral CT 7500 leads the way with advanced diagnostic capabilities through a single spectral scan. It enhances accuracy, reduces contrast doses, improves image quality, and speeds time to treatment, revolutionising patient care by saving time, costs, and scans."
This investment by Blackrock Health group in Ireland's first Philips Spectral CT 7500 in the Republic of Ireland is further to the €500 million group investment announced in September 2024.