X-ray, ultrasound and other radiology services at Epsom and St Helier hospitals

Radiology

Our radiology department provides diagnostic and research imaging services to help clinicians and hospital teams in the diagnosis and treatment of patients. These services include:

General X-rays
Interventional Procedures
Ultrasound including vascular Ultrasound
Nuclear medicine
Dental imaging
Computerised tomography (CT scan)
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
Barium meal or swallow

Emergency, inpatient and outpatient radiology services are available at both Epsom and St Helier hospitals. Outpatient services are also available at Leatherhead Hosptial and the Jubilee Health Centre in Wallington.

Queen Mary’s Hospital for Children has its own paediatric radiology department.

You may be referred to the radiology department either by your GP, A&E, and Outpatient referral or as part of your in-patient stay in our hospitals.

Types of radiology procedures

General X-rays

An X-ray (radiograph) is a non-invasive medical test that helps doctors diagnose and treat medical conditions. Imaging with X-rays involves exposing a part of the body to a small dose of ionizing radiation to produce pictures of the inside of the body.

X-rays are the oldest and most frequently used form of medical imaging. They are used to image:

Bones to exclude fractures or joint dysfunction
The chest, spine and abdomen as first line diagnosis of common medical conditions.

Interventional procedures

Interventional Radiology is a medical sub-specialty of radiology using image-guided procedures to diagnose and treat diseases in nearly every organ system. The concept behind interventional radiology is to diagnose and treat patients using the least invasive techniques currently available in order to minimise risk to the patient and improve health outcomes. These procedures have less risk, less pain and less recovery time compared to open surgery

Ultrasound

An ultrasound scan is a painless test that uses high frequency sound waves to create images of organs and structures inside your body. It is a very commonly used test as it uses sound waves and not radiation and captures images in real time to show the structure and movement of the body's internal organs.

Vascular ultrasound records sound waves reflecting off moving objects, such as blood cells, to measure their speed and other aspects of how they flow through the body.

Nuclear medicine

Nuclear medicine imaging uses small amounts of radioactive material to image both organ function and structure. It can be used to diagnose or treat a variety of diseases, including many types of cancers, heart disease and certain other abnormalities within the body.

Most nuclear medicine procedures are performed using a gamma camera, a specialised camera that is capable of detecting radiation and taking pictures from different angles. It may be:

Suspended over the examination table from a tall, moveable post
Be part of a metal arm that hangs over the table
Rotate around your body.

Dental imaging

This involves imaging of the teeth and parts of the mouth and jaw using imaging plates on the outside of the face or very small X-ray film inserted inside the mouth.

CT scanning

CT or CAT scans stand for Computed Tomography, or Computed Axial Tomography. CT imaging combines special x-ray equipment with sophisticated computers to produce multiple images or pictures of the inside of the body.

CT scans of internal organs, bone, soft tissue and blood vessels provide greater clarity and reveal more details than regular X-ray exams. The CT scanner consists of a short tunnel. You will lie on a table which slides into and out of this tunnel.

MRI scanning

MRI stands for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, which uses a magnetic field, and computer technology to produce detailed pictures of organs, soft tissues, bone and virtually all other internal body structures.

Jewellery and other accessories need to be removed prior to having an MRI scan, because they can interfere with the magnetic field of the MRI unit and no metal or electronic objects are not allowed in the exam room. The MRI unit is a large cylinder-shaped tube surrounded by a circular magnet. You will lie on a moveable examination table that slides into the centre of the magnet.

Barium meal or swallow

This examination is an X-ray examination of the pharynx, oesophagus, stomach and first part of the small intestine. You will be required to drink a barium solution which coats your organs so the radiologist is able to view and assess the anatomy and function of the oesophagus, stomach and duodenum.

Key staff

Dr Sally Lewis

Radiology Clinical Lead and Consultant Radiologist

Mina Deved

Head of Radiology Services

Helen Grant

Lead Superintendent St Helier Hospital, Queen Mary’s Hospital for Children and Jubilee Health Centre

Non Dube

Lead Superintendent Epsom and Leatherhead hospitals

Location

Plain X-rays (limbs, chest, abdomen, spine): walk-in GP and outpatient services at:

Ultrasound:

Nuclear Medicine:

St Helier Hospital.

CT:

MRI:

Opening hours

Plain X-rays (limbs, chest, abdomen, spine)

St Helier and Epsom hospitals

Monday - Friday, 9am - 4.30pm (walk-in GP and outpatient services)

Jubilee Health Centre

The operating hours for the open access walk-in radiology service for X-rays at the Jubilee Health Centre are 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 4.30pm for patients that are mobile and over 4 years olds.

Please call 020 8296 4290 if you have any queries.

Leatherhead Hospital

Leatherhead Hospital X-Ray runs an appointment only system. All patients requiring X-Ray need to phone: 01372 384350 to book an appointment. The reception / booking line is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 12:30pm and from 1:30pm to 4:30pm. For Leatherhead Hospital ultrasound appointments, patients need to phone: 01372 735408.