I was delighted to recently provide a very warm welcome to Affidea Diagnostics Ireland Ltd to Athlone and to have obtained a special viewing of its new Athlone MRI Scan facility. This MRI diagnostics facility which has now just gone operational in the town is located in a modular unit to the rear of the Athlone Primary Care Centre. It is a lovely Christmas present and a really good news story for the people of Athlone and surrounding areas, as no longer will it be necessary for the public to have to travel to a general hospital in the region for an MRI scan. In addition to this the facility provides welcome employment for the locality.
As we all know, having to go for an MRI scan can be an anxious time for the individual through stress and worry. This fantastic medical facility will now save people the costs and inconvenience of having to travel outside of Athlone for their scans, as from now on thanks to Affidea, this service is available within our community. Attending hospitals can add further stress with long waiting periods to get seen to and now I am glad to say that this facility provides a great alternative away to acquire an MRI scan away the busy hospital settings.
Athlone MRI will accept patients under the HSE GP Direct Access Scheme which was set up to provide patients with easier access to diagnostics in a timely manner. Apart of having this welcomed medical service in Athlone, the extra major benefit of it is that it is free for the full population of patients over 16 years of age. In other words, it is free of charge to all GP referred patients within that age bracket.
It is my intention to secure more medical facilities for Athlone as the town and its residents deserves to have such services. I would like to thank Affidea for choosing Athlone and I look forward to keeping in contact with them in the hope of attracting more of their excellent services to the area.
