Research MRI Scanners
Important
Our LabArchives Scheduler subscription, which was funded by the University’s Research Concordat, supported up to 12 users until 2nd September 2023. We are currently in the process of renewing our Scheduler license, and we are actively exploring a more long-term solution to the management of research MRI slots.
Making Reservation
LabArchives is being used as the online booking system for the research MRI scanners. It allows both UoS researchers and UHS staff (radiographers and research nurses) to view the scanner availability and make, update, and cancel reservations.
Link: https://scheduler.labarchives.com/
How do I register?
You would need a web browser that is not Internet Explorer (e.g. Firefox, Chrome, Microsoft Edge), create a password that is at least 12-digit long, and selecting “United Kingdom” for the instance of creating account from the UK server.
How does this work?
Here is how the calendar looks like:
For Radiographer: You, as the resource administrator of SMR1/SMR5, will get email notification every time a new reservation is proposed. You can then choose to approve/disprove depending on staff availability during that time. Our study coordinator will then confirm with the participant about the time and date to come.
The scheduler itself has an email subscription functionality - it will send you email to inform you a potential reservation to review and approve. You can adjust setting to turn on/off notifications to reduce email traffic, because they could get overwhelming (hopefully not).
For Research Nurse/Coordinator: You will have access to view the calendar of the research MRI scanner, where you can see the available scanners (SMR1/SMR5), when the scanner is available/unavailable/booked. You can propose new reservation on the calendar, which is pending approval (i.e. not confirmed yet) depending on radiographer availability during the proposed time. Once the reservation is approved, you would get an email notification, you can confirm with the participant about the time and date to come.
Note
What are SMR1 and SMR5 exactly?
SMR1 and SMR5 are the names for the two MRI scanners in our hospital. SMR1 is located on Level B, and SMR5 is located on Level C. They are managed as two separate resources on the LabArchives, so that it helps radiographers to anticipate where to assist research scans. Make sure you know which scanner to book, and if unsure, please check with the project PI.
What should I do after signing in?
After joining (once this step is done), you will need to click on your name at the top right and select Switch Organizations. This will open up a window where you can choose which organization to view. Select “Southampton Research MRI”, and you should be able to view the calendar.
How to look up for the reservations?
To get there you need to click on “Application Management” on top and then select “Reservations”. From there you can specify the filter to, e.g., a certain period of time, user (who made the reservations), and search for any keywords in the Title/Description (i.e. subject ID, hospital ID) of the reservations.
Your feedback matters
If you wish to share your thoughts and feedbacks on how to improve the running and management of research MRI slots, they are more than welcome and appreciated. Below you may find the link to a survey for submitting anonymous feedback:
Link to the survey: https://forms.office.com/r/ZS6LrG3dde