New Moffitt McKinley Hospital to Feature Intraoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Moffitt McKinley Hospital is the next-generation surgical hospital designed to provide quality care. The new 10-story, 500,000-square-foot facility with 19 operating rooms is located across the street from the Moffitt McKinley Outpatient Center.  

Advanced technology throughout the building will allow for improvements in patient experience, clinical outcomes and staff satisfaction. The new hospital will be home to a state-of-the-art intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) system to assist surgeons during surgeries.

Ultrasounds and CT scanners don’t provide the resolution required to pinpoint the location and detailed physical characteristics of a tumor. MRIs provide much higher resolution, but the high magnetic field of an MRI scanner provides a challenge in the operating room environment, in which surgical instruments can be attracted to the magnet. Also, moving a patient under general anesthesia to an MRI in another room during surgery is not ideal.

One of the advancements in technology within the hospital is the incorporation of intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) systems, a cutting-edge tool that will greatly benefit surgeons during complex surgeries, traditional imaging methods like ultrasounds and CT scanners may lack the necessary resolution to precisely pinpoint the location and detailed physical characteristics of a tumor.

With the MRI system, surgeons can conduct real-time imaging without the need to relocate the patient. This groundbreaking technology involves the MRI scanner smoothly gliding into the operating room on rails from a centralized diagnostic room. The surgical instruments and patient are secured before imaging, ensuring safety and accuracy. Once the necessary images are obtained, the iMRI gracefully retreats into the diagnostic imaging room, allowing the surgery to proceed seamlessly.

The hospital is also equipped with two nuclear medicine cameras, which use special imaging techniques to detect radioactive energy emitted from the patient’s body and convert it into an image, allowing physicians to pinpoint molecular activity.

Members of Moffitt's Patient and Family Advisory Council were instrumental in providing input for the architectural design to enhance the inpatient surgical experience. Other new features of the hospital include:

• Virtual assistance technology, such as integrated pillow speakers and voice controls 
• On-demand digital system with real-time updates on the patient’s needs such as dietary restrictions, allergies, medical concerns and more
• Expanded amenities such as increased the size of the guest beds within the patient rooms. To help caregivers recharge, there will also be family showers, laundry facilities, a spiritual room, a resource center, and expansive waiting areas with private alcoves  

If you’d like to refer a patient to Moffitt Cancer Center, complete our online form or contact a physician liaison for assistance. As part of our efforts to shorten referral times as much as possible, online referrals are typically responded to within 24 - 48 hours.