The first few minutes are often the deciding factor in emergency situations. For this reason, Siemens is now offering a mini ultrasound unit that will enable patients to receive medical treatment faster than ever before. Because this unit is just as compact as a PDA cell phone, weighs only about 700 grammes and easily fits into the doctor’s pocket, it is especially suitable for emergency medical applications, ie examining injuries on-site in order to ensure that each patient receives the medical treatment required.

The “Acuson P10” mini ultrasound unit offers decisive advantages for first aid in outpatient areas, rescue helicopters and intensive care units. It is mobile, easy to operate and available to doctors whenever and wherever it is needed. When set to high-definition ultrasound image acquisition, it can, for example, be used to detect accumulations of

liquids in the body and heart action, display any damage to arteries and examine the pelvis. In obstetrics, it can be used even during childbirth to determine the location of the unborn child, position and chances of survival, as well as to visualise the amount of amniotic fluid or bleeding and the likelihood of them escaping.

The ultrasound images are displayed on a folding moni-tor located on the unit. The unit can easily be controlled with the thumb, in much the same way as a PDA pocket computer. Its storage batteries enable ultrasound images with a total length of approximately one hour before they require recharging. The treating doctor can save the images, transfer them to the hospital inform-ation system and assign them to the patient’s file.

In Malta, Siemens and Midi are equal partners in a joint venture, Solutions and Infrastructure Services, that provides telephony and broadband internet services as well as building

technologies for the Tigné Point and Manoel Island projects.