Mobile CT Scanner

Research Background
Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability in the world. As of 2017, there were approximately 475,000 Australians living with the effects of stroke. This is predicted to increase to one million by 2050. More than 80% of stroke deaths and related disabilities may be prevented if adequate analysis and treatment can be provided within the first hour of the stroke.

Research Contribution
A Mobile Stroke Unit or MSU is centred around a straightforward but revolutionary concept - bring stroke treatment to the patient. Together with Micro-X, a pioneer and technology leader in ultra-lightweight, mobile x-ray imaging systems, Monash Design Health Collab created concept directions for the co-design of a mobile stroke imager for onsite, early stroke diagnosis. Design researchers also developed rapid digital and physical prototypes for the unit, now known as the ‘ring scanner’, which has the potential to turn every road or air-borne ambulance into a fast-acting stroke-capable ambulance.

Research Significance
Since 2017 a pilot Mobile Stroke Ambulance has been operating in Melbourne, attending to 1600 patients in the first 3 years. The MSU treated stroke patients 75 minutes faster than the Australian median. The MSU had major news coverage from outlets such as ABC News and Channel 7 News and the Australian Financial Review. Under the Australian Government’s Frontier Health and Medical Research initiative, a $40 million grant was awarded to the Australian Stroke Alliance (ASA) to further Mobile Stroke Unit research. Micro-X was awarded $8 million by the ASA to develop the low-cost, compact brain CT scanner. This in-turn helped Monash Design Health Collab enter a second phase of design research with a $780,500 research commission from Micro-X, to further design, prototype and validate the technology and its application in future stroke emergency workflows.