Midwest Ultrasound enters into a two-year renewable partnership with Toshiba America Medical

Midwest Ultrasound, a proven leader in providing quality cardiac and vascular ultrasound systems to a diverse client mix from small rural and community hospitals to major urban academic centers and large physician practices, entered into a two-year renewable partnership with Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. Through the agreement, Midwest Ultrasound purchased an initial 11 Xario^TM XG ultrasound systems to be utilized at The Christ Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio and various other clients. The Xario has been named Best in KLAS 2009 in KLAS Enterprises 2009 Top 20 Best in KLAS Awards: Medical Equipment (www.KLASresearch.com).

Midwest Ultrasound, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Christ Hospital, started with the purchase of 11 Xario XG systems to provide its clients with unique features and clinically proven technologies for unsurpassed image quality. The full range of imaging functions on the Xario XG let operators precisely visualize minute cardiac and vascular structures for fast and accurate diagnosis. Under the two-year agreement, Midwest Ultrasound has plans to purchase additional systems for other clients.

Prior to selecting Toshiba and the Xario XG, Midwest Ultrasound developed an extensive buying matrix and competitive analysis to determine which diagnostic imaging vendor would be selected. They evaluated numerous vendors on their qualifications in 14 different categories, some of which include: price, system longevity, clinical performance, product line fit, ergonomics and interface, advanced features, service quality, technical protection, education and relationship potential. Through this unique and exhaustive process, the Xario XG and Toshiba graded the highest among ten competitive systems.

“We evaluated systems and vendors on a 14-category buying matrix to more accurately and quantitatively determine the best systems for our clients’ needs,” said Dave Parlato, chief of clinical operations, Midwest Ultrasound. “When conducting the ultrasound analysis for this agreement, the Toshiba product line received the overall highest score and excelled in clinical performance, system longevity, ergonomics and interface, service quality and relationship potential. Toshiba also provided an upgrade path to ensure our clients would have the latest ultrasound technology for their patients.”

“Toshiba is committed to flexibility in our offerings to meet the clinical and service requirements of our customers,” said Girish Hagan, vice president, Marketing, Toshiba. “The scoring system used by Midwest Ultrasound demonstrates our commitment across all aspects of our business and how we strive to develop partnerships with our customers.”