Ladakh gets its first MRI machine at Leh's SNM Hospital

Leh (Ladakh) [India], August 25 : In a first, a 1.5 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine was installed at the MRI centre of the SNM Hospital in Leh, Ladakh.
Tashi Gyaltsen, the Chief Executive Councillor of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), inaugurated the facility for the people said that the residents of Ladakh will be benefitted.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that the MRI machine was installed as part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between LAHDC and the Airport Authority of India.
'In September 2019, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by LAHDC and the Airport Authority of India. As a part of that MoU under the idea of Corporate Social Responsibility, 1.5 Tesla MRI machine was installation here. We are dedicating this unit to the people of Leh district and Ladakh as a whole. I hope that this unit will benefit a lot of people here," he said.
Dr Sonam Wangchuk, a Radiologist at the hospital said that, in the absence of this machine, patients had to go to other places like Jammu for MRI.
"This 1.5 Tesla MRI Machine has come to Ladakh for the first time. Earlier in the absence of this machine, we faced a lot of problems. Patients had to go places like Jammu, Delhi for MRI. Spinal surgeons also needed it. It has benefited these spinal surgeons too as they can perform their operations here. This MRI is digital-based and its use would not be a claustrophobic experience for the patients. We are extremely thankful to the government for this," said Dr Wangchuk.