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Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH), with support from the community and RVH Foundation, is expanding access to medical imaging with the introduction of Innisfil’s first Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner, to be located at the Rizzardo Health and Wellness Centre. The new scanner will bring care closer to home for patients across the region.

Once operational, the new MRI will allow RVH to deliver nearly 4,000 additional scans each year, helping to reduce wait times and improve access to care. Currently, RVH performs approximately 24,000 MRIs annually, with demand continuing to rise as the region’s population grows and ages.

“RVH is home to the largest and most advanced medical imaging department in the region, delivering more than 200,000 imaging exams each year,” says Gail Hunt, President and CEO of RVH. “MRI plays a critical role across cancer, cardiology, surgery and chronic disease management. Adding a third MRI in Innisfil expands our capacity and helps ensure our region can keep pace with growing demand.”

The new MRI — a MAGNETOM Flow Elite — will be RVH’s third and one of the first of its kind in Ontario. MRI technology uses magnets and radio waves to produce detailed images of the body without surgery or radiation, supporting diagnosis and treatment planning across a wide range of conditions. Designed with patients and health care teams in mind, the MAGNETOM Flow Elite offers a wider opening and faster scan times to improve patient comfort, built-in artificial intelligence to support efficient, high-quality imaging, and technology that requires virtually no liquid helium, making the system more sustainable, environmentally friendly and reliable over time.

“This investment in smart technology allows us to provide safer, more precise and timely care,” says Dr. Jeffrey Tyberg, RVH Chief of Staff and Vice President of Academic & Medical Affairs. “Expanded MRI capacity means quicker access to diagnostic imaging and improved coordination of care across multiple clinical programs.”

Working with partners at the Town of Innisfil, RVH has signed an agreement with SDI Canada to purchase a prefabricated modular unit, known as a Cassette Movable Building, which will attach to the existing Rizzardo Health and Wellness Centre, where RVH has been providing outpatient and diagnostic services since 2019.

Site preparation is expected to begin in March 2026, with the modular unit arriving in August 2026. RVH’s target is to begin performing MRI procedures in Innisfil by November 2026.

This expansion is supported by $800,000 in annual funding from the Ontario government, which will cover the operation of the MRI, including staffing.

“Our government is continuously investing in bringing healthcare closer to home, where people work and live,” said Andrea Khanjin, MPP for Barrie–Innisfil. “This results in better outcomes and means people can be closer to their loved ones throughout their healthcare journey. By supporting the addition of a new MRI through operational funding, we are helping to reduce wait times and expand access to diagnostic imaging.”

While the Ontario government provides funding to support the operation of MRI services, hospitals are responsible for funding all major medical equipment. The purchase of both the MRI scanner and the modular unit that will house it was made entirely possible through community generosity and reflects how donor support is being put to work at RVH.

“Our donors made this happen,” said Mary-Anne Frith, Chair of the RVH Foundation Board of Directors and Keep Life Wild campaign. “Their generosity is directly improving how and when patients receive care by bringing advanced imaging to Innisfil and helping people stay close to home when they need answers.”

Locating RVH’s third MRI in Innisfil reflects both where the organization is today and where it is going, with a proposed health hub planned just across the road from the Rizzardo site.

“Our long-term vision is about providing the right care, in the right place, at the right time,” said Hunt. “This project is an important step toward meeting the needs of our growing region.”