We are what I call a research-priority facility. First and foremost, we serve to power the research engine of Texas A&M University, providing world-class scientists with access to state-of-the-art imaging technology. Studies performed at our facility are leveraging this technology to provide novel insights into the nature of mental illness, the diagnosis of neurological disease, how our brains change with development, and how the brain supports the complex mental processes that make us human.
Empowering scientific discovery is the primary means by which we impact the lives of the people of the Texas, the United States, and the world in accordance with our mission as a land-grant institution. Findings from studies performed at the Human Imaging Facility provide new insights that speak to how we can best address pressing health concerns such as Alzheimer’s Disease and other age-related cognitive impairment, drug addiction, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and pain management. Our research informs how we understand and promote mental health, along with efforts to alleviate the burden of depression and anxiety that is increasingly prevalent in modern society. The studies we support contribute to the growing understanding of how the mind really works, which has far-reaching implications for efforts to more fully realize the potential that each person has to learn and to engage their mental abilities. In the context of all of these efforts, the scientists we partner with are training the next generation of innovators in the burgeoning field of human neuroscience.
With that being said, we also think more broadly with respect to how we live up to our mission as a land-grant institution. Most research-dedicated facilities—facilities that make their imaging technology available exclusively for the purposes of research studies—struggle with the inevitable imbalance of supply and demand when it comes to scanner time. These facilities are often either chronically underutilized, with periods of unbooked scanner time each week, or are situated to serve more scientists than they can realistically accommodate, which tends to result in unsustainable scheduling practices that work to the detriment of the science. A research-grade MRI unit and the expertise of a trained MRI Technologist reflect a significant investment that should be utilized to the fullest extent possible, but committing to the support of more scientists than available scanner time can accommodate in order to avoid underutilizing these resources creates more challenges than it resolves. These competing factors present a difficult problem, well known to the medical imaging community, that university imaging facilities have consistently struggled to manage.
As a research-priority facility, we have found this situation to pose a unique opportunity to uphold our research mission while at the same time leveraging our significant resources to serve the people of Texas in another, very tangible way. We make our otherwise unbooked scanner time available to meet the diagnostic imaging needs of the members of the greater Bryan-College Station community. We have found that scientists generally prefer to schedule their studies with some measure of advance notice, reflecting the logistical needs of complex research operations. At the same time, patients in need of diagnostic imaging generally wish to have their health needs addressed as soon as possible and wait times for MRI appointments at area hospitals can often be long. This results in a natural synergy in which unbooked time between and around studies, and scanner time that becomes available when a participant cancels or is otherwise unable to keep a study appointment with little forenotice, can be filled by patients with medical imaging needs.
We believe that high-quality healthcare should be affordable, and we support efforts to make healthcare more affordable. As a research-priority facility, we have considerably lower overhead than most hospitals, and as a facility that does not process medical insurance claims, we are not beholden to negotiated contracts with insurance companies that affect our pricing. We simply offer diagnostic imaging services at cost to us, which is derived from a comprehensive rate study. The price we offer is generally less expensive than what area hospitals are able to offer cash-paying patients or what their patients would be likely to pay without having met their deductible, and even with full insurance coverage post-deductible, we may still be a less expensive option depending on the insurance provider. And although we are more expensive than some area diagnostic imaging facilities, our powerful research-grade magnet offers high-resolution images that allow for the most accurate and informed medical decisions, comparable to what top research hospitals can offer.
In order to ensure the highest quality diagnostic imaging services, our imaging facility is accredited for brain, spine, and musculoskeletal imaging by the American College of Radiology (ACR) and all diagnostic imaging studies are performed by an American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) certified MRI Technologist. Given the limited range of diagnostic imaging protocols we can support (e.g., we are not set up to administer MRI contrast materials) and given our limited scheduling capacity as a research-priority facility, we only partner with a small number of area practices in accepting referrals. These area practices are familiar with our capacity, pricing, and scheduling limitations, and so are in a position to refer patients who are a good fit for our services. And given that we are a research-priority facility, we are able to communicate with these practices in order to calibrate the frequency of referrals to our evolving scanner availability.
Significant discoveries happen here, and in the space in between, we contribute to meeting the health needs of Texans with affordable, high-quality diagnostic imaging services.
Brian A. Anderson
Director of the Human Imaging Facility
