Killer scanners (7)

1 Name: Sling!XD/uSlingU 2005-08-21 22:08 ID:yg1jBRcJ

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/19/health/19magnet.html
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"The pictures and stories are the stuff of slapstick: wheelchairs, gurneys and even floor polishers jammed deep inside M.R.I. scanners whose powerful magnets grabbed them from the hands of careless hospital workers.

The police officer whose pistol flew out of his holster and shot a wall as it hit the magnet. The sprinkler repairman whose acetylene tank was yanked inside, breaking its valve and starting a fire that razed the building."

"Scanners can also generate currents in other metals, and many unconscious patients have suffered burns - usually minor - when wires looped on bare skin have heated up."

"Scanners can also pose a danger during emergencies. In Freiburg, Germany, a fireman fighting a blaze elsewhere in the hospital was sucked into the scanner's bore by his air tank. Folded in half, with his knees pressed into his chest, he nearly choked to death."

2 Name: !WAHa.06x36 2005-08-22 00:23 ID:WM2b8IEp

Every hospital that has an MRI machine has stories about it. Those things use supraconducting magnets cooled by liquid helium, generating fields on the order of Teslas. This is unbelievably strong. I've heard they show instruction videos to the people that need to work with them where they get a pair of scissors to fly across the room and embed themselves in a wooden board. Walk into the room with keys in your pocket, and you'll have to rip your pants off to get out - shutting down the magnet is expensive and dangerous. The energy release when it stop superconducting is huge.

There's a little site dedicated to things flying into MRI machines: http://www.simplyphysics.com/flying_objects.html

3 Name: Mad Scientist 2005-08-23 07:45 ID:Heaven

>>2
So how the fuck do they get the the various chairs, cleaning equipment etc off the thing?

4 Name: !WAHa.06x36 2005-08-23 14:37 ID:Qi+yZ9EP

>>3

As I understand it, either you shut the magnet down, lose a day or two of work and a small fortune in liquid helium, remove the chair, and power back up, or you do it the hard way:

http://www.simplyphysics.com/flying_objects/chair_4.html

> This happened on the 3-11 shift. The next morning all were assembled to brainstorm. Maintenance drilled a hole in the concrete and placed an eye screw. A winch was located outside the room and with a nylon rope the chair was pulled off. After GE‘s assessment and okay, we were up and running by noon or 1pm! We were impressed that this was accomplished without a quench and significant downtime.

5 Name: Mad Scientist 2005-08-26 05:25 ID:cSQskZuJ

Don't the people running the machines have proper training? I never hear stories like that with NMRs.

6 Name: bubu 2005-08-26 10:13 ID:kTTysx6U

>>5
It has often very little to do with the training of the operators.
It has however very much to do with with retards (cleaning personnel, patients, ...) being unable to read huge, flashing signs "MRI OPERATING, NO ENTRY" - in four languages, no less, plus pictures! - at the door!

7 Name: Alexander!DxY0NCwFJg!!muklVGqN 2005-08-28 22:34 ID:Heaven

I can't resist putting part of the blame on poor socialisation concerning the concept of "horizontal gravity". It's SOCIETY'S FAULT! ; )

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