Celebrating 40 years of imaging excellence

As we approach our 40th Birthday, we wanted to share a little about how Mercy Radiology began and our dedicated, supportive community's crucial role in getting us to where we are today. Our business is all about providing exceptional patient care, with a team behind us in everything we do. We’re so proud of everything we’ve achieved in the last 40 years, and we can’t wait to see what the next 40 years bring!

We’ll share many exciting moments, memories, and more on our social media over the next few months as we celebrate our birthday in style. We invite you to follow us there, get involved, and be a part of what we have in store for you!

Thank you for all your support - cheers to us all!

In 1980, Sue Dixon came to Auckland and was initially hired as a radiographer.   Sue progressively built her role and the Mercy Radiology business into what it is today. From Clinical Operations Manager, Sue eventually took the role as one of our key Project Managers, looking after planning and fitting out all our new branches, as well as maintaining the older ones.

Sue Dixon’s 40-year legacy at Mercy extends far beyond her time served. Her influence can be felt in the lives she’s touched, the projects she’s led, and the milestones she’s achieved, all of which have shaped Mercy Radiology. Sue is now semi-retired but continues to be involved with Mercy Radiology in a more casual role.

In 1983, the Sisters of Marter approached Dr. Dermot Mora about taking over the existing radiology department in Mercy Hospital, then known as Marter Hospital.

Mater Hospital was extremely run-down. The nuns who worked and lived there had begun to redevelop the theatres and wards but had run out of money to redevelop the remaining departments. After a lot of negotiation, the practice was started in 1984 with Dr Dermot Mora, Dr Tony House, Dr Chris Cotter, and Dr Bob Anderson. Dr Benson Cooper, Dr Mark Osborne, and Dr Kevin Lee, who came on board in 1990, joined the team in 1985.

In its initial stages, the business was known as Mater Radiology to align with the Sisters Mater Misericordiae. Its profits were based on eight patients per day! The name was later changed to Mercy Radiology in 1988.

The practice's vision was to provide the very best service in terms of patient experience, accurate and excellent imaging, and the best reporting and diagnosing possible. All the Doctors had their own specialties, offering services such as Ultrasound, Paediatrics, Chest Imaging, Breast Imaging, and Neuro-Imaging.

One of the sisters, Sister Kathleen, worked alongside our team to see the development and setup of Marter Radiology. At the time, the nuns were in charge of every department, and they lived in the areas now known as the Specialist Centre, with a chapel situated onsite in what’s now known as the ARO area.

The initial six months of the business’s establishment involved opening the ultrasound unit and rebuilding and re-equipping the existing equipment. This was followed by the first dedicated mammography machine in 1985, a GE 600T, and a new Toshiba CT machine in 1986. These were installed in what is now known as Radiology 2, which we took over and renovated in 1986. Prior to this, it was a maternity ward.

When I joined Mercy Radiology in 1985 as a Partner I was 35 and very much the junior radiologist. We put in our first mammography machine simultaneously, and I urgently needed to learn about marketing. We were building a new practice, and we needed patients. We were very kind and caring and gave 7 days of 24-hour service. I have had a number of roles over the decades, but I always saw my duty as looking after the frontline staff, something that has always been part of Mercy.

I may be one of the oldest staff members now, but it is still the No. 1 radiology group for me because we have such fabulous staff!

Kind regards

BC

Ex junior partner : Ex Managing Partner : Ex CEO : Ex Medical Director : Now Happy Radiologist! :)

Over the years, there have been many staff changes to both administration and clinic areas, and we are so proud of the huge advancements we’ve made in terms of equipment imaging, quality, and services we have provided.

Mercy’s growth has blossomed from the collaborative efforts of our talented team, all dedicated to delivering exceptional care for our patients.

We hope you have had an incredible experience visiting our facilities! We’re so excited to celebrate these 40 years with you. If you want to keep in touch, please subscribe to our newsletter. In it, you can read all about our latest endeavours and how we continue to strive for excellence here at Mercy Radiology.