KLAS Examines the Recent Growth and Future Obstacles Facing Toshiba

    OREM, UT, October 12, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- GE, Philips and Siemens have long been known as the Big 3 of medical imaging, but a new report from KLAS explores Toshiba's emergence as a fourth large-portfolio vendor that a growing number of providers believe merits consideration in many purchase situations.

The KLAS report, "Toshiba: Earning a Seat at the Table", aims to address many of the questions surrounding the company's medical imaging products, several of which have consistently achieved top KLAS performance scores despite a relatively new presence in the U.S. market.

At the forefront of Toshiba's push into the U.S. inpatient market is the company's innovation in computed tomography (CT). "Toshiba's CT leapfrog from 64 to 320 detectors with the AquilionONE is turning heads," said Kirk Ising, KLAS research director for medical imaging/medical equipment and author of the Toshiba report. "Providers have consistently reported that the Aquilion line of CT scanners has proven to be reliable and capable of high image quality - plus, it is often priced lower than competitive offerings."

The report notes that imaging executives would consider Toshiba 55 percent of the time in CT purchases, putting the vendor's Aquilion product in the mix with GE (68 percent), Siemens (58 percent) and Philips (40 percent). Toshiba also continues to gain traction in the magnetic resonance (MR) market, thanks to the slow but steady growth of its Vantage MR line, and in particular, the availability of a wide-bore option for claustrophobic or bariatric patients. Though still outpaced by GE and Siemens in MR, Toshiba has pulled even with Philips, as 37 percent of executives would consider Toshiba in MR, compared to 38 percent for Philips.

Toshiba's steady gains in the U.S. in CT and MR have come in part because of the company's consistently strong customer service, regardless of the product line. When compared against the Big 3 in overall customer satisfaction across multiple imaging markets, Toshiba scores 4 to 5 points higher than the competitors on KLAS' 100-point performance scale.

However, the KLAS report also points to several challenges Toshiba faces in other imaging departments. Despite the company's steady progress in diagnostic radiology, GE, Philips and Siemens dominate the discussion in cardiology. Toshiba has a respectable history and product set in cardiac x-ray and echo ultrasound, but the company is considered far less frequently by imaging executives in these areas. Further, Toshiba's place among the Big 3 is also hampered by the company's lack of an offering in digital mammography and nuclear medicine.

Overall, the KLAS study indicates that while Toshiba is not a viable option for every imaging need, most providers now ask when they should consider Toshiba, not if. "At this point, Toshiba cannot be considered as an exclusive partner candidate for all major imaging needs due to a few noteworthy holes in its portfolio, as well as the company's low brand recognition in cardiology," Ising said. "However, imaging departments are finding individual areas to entrust to Toshiba, and as they do, most are reporting a very positive experience."

The report "Toshiba: Earning a Seat at the Table" is available to healthcare providers online for a significant discount off the standard retail price. To purchase the full report, healthcare providers and vendors can visit www.KLASresearch.com/reports.

About KLAS
KLAS is a research firm specializing in monitoring and reporting the performance of healthcare vendors. KLAS' mission is to improve delivery, by independently measuring vendor performance for the benefit of our healthcare provider partners, consultants, investors and vendors. Working together with executives from more than 4,500 hospitals and over 2,500 clinics, KLAS delivers timely reports, trends and statistics, which provide a solid overview of vendor performance in the industry. KLAS measures the performance of software, professional services and medical equipment vendors. For more information, go to www.KLASresearch.com, email [email protected] or call 1-800-920-4109 to speak with a KLAS representative.

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