Specialized, Accessible Imaging Services at Samaritan

Published on: August 7, 2024

Medical imaging is a crucial aspect of healthcare. CT scans, MRIs, ultrasounds, X-rays and other technologies allow healthcare professionals to diagnose conditions accurately, plan surgeries effectively, and monitor the progress of treatments. Samaritan Health understands the power of medical imaging and has made significant investments to bring high-quality imaging talent and technology to the North Country.

Prioritizing easy access to exceptional imaging services, Samaritan offers walk-in X-rays at Samaritan Medical Center, Samaritan Health & Wellness Plaza, and Samaritan’s Coffeen Street Imaging & Lab Center in Watertown. X-rays are also accessible at Samaritan’s Adams and Clayton Family Health Centers, extending a valuable service to both ends of Jefferson County.

Patients can now self-schedule a screening mammogram at Samaritan in just a few minutes using a secure online scheduling tool. This resource displays available appointment dates and times up to three months in advance, empowering patients to make proactive healthcare choices without needing to call the scheduling office.

And, once images have been captured, Samaritan makes them easily accessible to patients and providers with Nuance PowerShare — a free and secure online service with convenient access to medical imaging, radiology scans and reports. PowerShare puts patients in charge of their images and scans, allowing them to quickly and conveniently grant access to the providers who also utilize the system.

With all of these points of access, it’s no surprise that the Samaritan Health System captures upwards of 130,000 medical images in a typical year. To be exact, 142,723 images were taken in 2023, which translates to about 390 images per day, or 16 every hour!

“Providing access to advanced medical imaging and radiology services is not only critical for our physicians to make accurate diagnoses,” said Samaritan President and CEO Thomas Carman, “but it’s also about empowering our patients with clarity, peace of mind, and the information they need to make the best possible healthcare decisions.”

Image-Guided Treatment

In addition to traditional radiology procedures, such as X-rays and MRIs, Samaritan Medical Center offers the North Country community a highly specialized imaging service — interventional radiology. This service utilizes minimally-invasive, image-guided procedures to diagnose and treat diseases in nearly every organ system.

Some common Interventional radiology procedures include:

• Embolization — using ultrasound and live X-ray for guidance, specialists block blood vessels to stop bleeding or reduce blood flow to certain areas of the body. This can be used to treat aneurysms, treat certain tumors, shrink the prostate gland in men with BPH, reduce knee pain and minimize uterine fibroids in women or varicoceles in men.
• Angioplasty — uses a balloon catheter to widen narrowed or blocked arteries or veins, improving blood flow. This procedure relies on live X-ray to guide the catheter to the blockage. It is commonly used to treat atherosclerosis, a buildup of fats and cholesterol on the artery walls.
• Kyphoplasty — also uses image guidance and a balloon catheter, but to treat compression fractures in the vertebrae, usually caused by osteoporosis or spinal tumors.
• Ablation – uses image guidance and thermal energy to treat certain tumors located in the liver, kidneys, lungs and elsewhere.

As complex as these procedures are, they only require small incisions to be performed and are usually complete within a few hours. In most cases, patients experience fast symptom relief and are able to continue normal activities within days or even hours.

Samaritan Medical Center has one of few interventional radiology clinics in the North Country, staffed by a team of specialists. In July, Samaritan welcomed Russell A. Reeves, MD, MBA, MS, a fellowship-trained interventional radiologist, to lead the practice.

Dr. Reeves received his medical degree from Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH, and completed residencies in diagnostic radiology and interventional radiology at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals in Philadelphia, PA. He was an interventional radiology fellow at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and is certified by the American Board of Radiology.

He specializes in lymphatic interventions, using imaging guidance to both diagnose and treat lymphatic leaks in the abdomen and chest, as well as treatment of superficial and deep venous diseases, including varicose veins, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism. Dr. Reeves is also trained in hepatic interventions, treating patients with advanced liver disease who suffer from recurrent ascites, difficulty thinking due to hepatic encephalopathy, or bleeding from the stomach due to abdominal varices.

“I’m excited to join the Samaritan team and look forward to serving the Northern New York and Fort Drum communities,” says Dr. Reeves. “With a fantastic interventional radiology staff and advanced imaging technology, we are able to provide life-changing treatment right here in Watertown.”

Samaritan Interventional Radiology is accepting new patients. Visit samaritanhealth.com/interventional-radiology to learn more or call 315-785-4230 to schedule an appointment.