For Immediate Release	Contact: Joyce Faria Brennan
March 19, 2008	508-961-5270
	brennanj@southcoast.org
Get this release in Word format

WAREHAM, Mass. — Tobey Hospital, the Wareham site of Southcoast Hospitals Group, has expanded magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) service hours to weekends, early morning and evenings.

"It is often difficult for patients to juggle work, physician appointments and family obligations," said Debra A. Desmarais, Director of Radiology Services for Southcoast Hospitals Group. "The new MRI hours at Tobey offer residents of Greater Wareham and the Cape convenient appointments early in the morning, later in the evening and all day Saturdays."

MRI services at Tobey Hospital are offered on Mondays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the hospital on 43 High Street in Wareham.

MRI services at Tobey are provided by Southeastern Massachusetts MRI in a self-contained mobile unit which offers the same high-quality imaging and faster scans as traditional fixed units.

Over the past few years, new applications have been developed for MRI utilizing noninvasive means of diagnosing vascular disease, stroke and joint and musculoskeletal disorders. Southcoast has become a major regional center for MRI testing, performing more than 7,000 MRI scans annually at the Charlton and Tobey sites.

Southcoast's staff of highly trained radiologists offers 24-hour turnaround time for test results and is readily available for consultation. Same day and next day appointments are available following a physician's order. Ask your health care provider for more information.

About Southcoast

Southcoast Health System, a not-for-profit charitable organization, is a community based health delivery system with multiple access points, offering an integrated continuum of advanced health services throughout Southeastern Massachusetts and East Bay, Rhode Island. It includes Southcoast Hospitals Group, formed in 1996 from the merger of Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford and Tobey Hospital in Wareham.

Southcoast has more than 40 ancillary facilities, including the Southcoast Health Van, home health care, hospice and infusion services, numerous outpatient medical services, an assisted living facility and a wellness center. For more information visit www.southcoast.org.

Southcoast is one of three community hospitals approved by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to perform open heart surgery and primary angioplasty beginning in Spring 2002.

Media Contact

Joyce Faria Brennan
Public Information Officer
Phone: 508-961-5270
Pager: 508-387-9605
Fax: 508-961-5876
brennanj@southcoast.org