SonoSite, the world leader in hand-carried ultra sound, has initiated dialogue with the state government health and family welfare departments across the country for mandatory installations of the hand-carried ultrasound system at primary health centres. This will allow the State Inspection and Monitoring Committee (SIMC) of the Pre-Conception and Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC&PNDT) Cells in the states to curb and control the practices of violating the PNDT Act of 1994.

"The outcome of the talks is positive primarily because SonoSite supplies the ultrasound equipment after an affidavit is inked to ensure that the systems are used as per the provisions of the PNDT Act, stated Pavan Behl, country manager, SonoSite India Private Limited. The systems will be supplied to only authorized diagnostic centres which comply with the provisions of the PNDT Act, he added.

In order to capture the potential Indian market for hand-carried ultrasound systems which are efficient and easy to handle, SonoSite Inc. has opened its wholly owned subsidiary for sales and marketing support in India at Gurgaon, Haryana last month. It has already a network of dealers across the country in addition to its dedicated team that handles pre-sales, installation and after sales service.

The key objective of SonoSite India is to provide the ultrasound at the point of care in the remote and rural areas. The company is now setting the trend to move away from accessing traditional diagnostic centres by patients and bring the ultrasound testing to the bed-side. Ultrasound diagnosis is indispensable for emergency medicine, cardiac care, accident & trauma and gynecology, sports medicine and war zones where emergency accuracy and timely diagnosis are critical to provide treatment. The light weight equipment can be also carried in ambulances. In the long run it has the potential to reduce costs for healthcare providers and patients, stated the SonoSite India chief.

The 3.8 kilograms hand carried ultrasound equipment is simple to operate and rugged in design. The company has conducted workshops to educate doctors and diagnostic labs on the advantages of the installation. The system is priced at Rs 14-18 lakh compared to the conventional ultrasound systems costing Rs 25 lakh to Rs 30 lakh.

Another unique advantage is that compared to the other available ultrasounds systems in the country of leading players like GE Healthcare and others, the operating platform is VX unlike the Windows operating systems. The VX platform features make the machine ideal for continuous mission critical operations and a crucial aspect of it is that it needs only boot time of 10 seconds. It also has a 4 hour battery back up. The product range includes MicroMaxx, Titan, 180Plus and iLook systems.