(6/01/11) – Nuclear medicine uses radioactive isotopes to diagnose diseases. Leigh Mitchell, NMTCB, performs the testing at McLeod Medical Center Dillon and is certified by the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board.

The Nuclear Medicine Department at McLeod Medical Center Dillon is surveyed by the American College of Radiology (ACR) and the Department of Radiological Health, a division of the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC). For more than ten years, Leigh has maintained a 100% compliance with state regulations under the DHEC survey. In 2009, the department was awarded a three-year term of accreditation in nuclear medicine as the result of the ACR survey.

"In order to maintain these accreditations and successfully comply with state regulations, Leigh performs daily calibrations on the nuclear medicine equipment and performs quality assurance checks. Quarterly oversight of this work is provided by a Certified Radiological Physicist on a quarterly basis, of which Leigh has assured 100% compliance," said Tim McKinley, R.T. (R)(T), Director of Radiology Services at McLeod Dillon. "His hard work and dedication ensures the high quality diagnostic imaging performed in the Nuclear Medicine Department."

About the American College of Radiology
The ACR, headquartered in Reston, Virginia, awards accreditation to facilities for the achievement of high practice standards after a peer-review evaluation of the practice. Evaluations are conducted by board-certified physicians and medial physicists who are experts in the field. They assess the qualifications of the personnel and the adequacy of facility equipment. The surveyors report their findings to the ACR’s Committee on Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report.

The ACR is a national organization serving more than 32,000 diagnostic and interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, and nuclear medicine and medical physicists with programs focusing on the practice of medical imaging and radiation oncology and the delivery of comprehensive health care services.