Teleradiology - Ultrasound - Arctic Circle Project from Henry Ford

Why Is Katie O'Connell Going To The Arctic Circle?

Devon Island in the Arctic Circle isnt your typical vacation destination. In the winter, at -50 Celsius, its inhabitable. But its actually the perfect location to test the use of ultrasound for medical diagnosis because its remote, dusty environment is similar to that of Mars.

This week, Katie OConnell - a fourth-year Wayne State University medical student doing a rotation at Henry Ford Hospital - began her journey to Devon Island, the largest uninhabited island in the world.

Shes going there to transmit ultrasound images back to Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit and Scott Dulchavsky, M.D. Ph.D, the Chairman of Surgery. Dr. Dulchavsky is principle investigator and team leader of a group of NASA scientists refining techniques for examining and treating sick or injured astronauts on the International Space Station and beyond.

His team developed a training program that, in just a few hours, teaches non-medical crew members how to use portable ultrasound equipment to help diagnose an injury. The ultrasound images are transmitted by satellite to radiologists at Henry Ford Hospital, who can read them and help make a diagnosis.

OConnell is expected to return to Detroit in early August.

Follow O'Connell during her trip at twitter.com/SpaceSurgeon.