Episode 12, the last episode of Series 1 of "The Invisible Force" Podcast on the AuntMinnie Podcast Network, wraps up the investigation of the 2025 MRI-related fatality in Westbury, NY.
MR safety educators and experts Tobias "Toby" Gilk and John Posh consider the event the "second most infamous MRI fatality in the U.S." Has it prompted state-level action toward MRI safety standards? Gilk and Posh explain and identify the gaps.
Posh begins with national standards and the general nature of state survey agencies that work on behalf of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
"While CMS doesn’t explicitly require it, the built-in presumption is that the states have state-level authority to look at the quality and safety issues, with minimum criteria that -- even if they don’t match CMS, exactly -- are close enough that there’s a good indication that the healthcare provider is meeting CMS’s quality and safety minimums," Posh explains during the episode.
Episode 12 clarifies the divide between regulatory approaches to sources of ionizing radiation -- such as x-ray and PET -- and MRI.
"If you were CMS and you were looking at the states’ ability to meet the federal safety objectives, such as 'must meet professionally approved standards for safety,' or that 'radiologic services must be free from hazards for patients and personnel,' with respect to MRI, there’s zero evidence that the states are able to do that with respect to MRI," Posh noted.
For nearly one year after Keith McAllister died, Gilk and Posh repeatedly inquired about state-level activities, oversight, and responses related to the July 16, 2025, Nassau Open MRI accident and all reports associated with it. Episode 12 identifies the contacts they made and the outcomes of their investigative efforts.
"We were bracing ourselves for the likelihood that we were going to buried in documents," Gilk said.
Episode 12 closes Act 3 of Series 1 of "The Invisible Force." Previous episodes delved into litigation, how the quench button was used during the emergency, and MRI crisis communication following the incident. Gilk and Posh also focus on the MRI service engineer's perspective and raise safety-check questions for MRI center managers.
"While we’re drawing the telling of the McAllister story to a close, it’s really more of an indefinite pause than an end," Gilk noted.
Next, Series 2 (a three-part series) of "The Invisible Force" will focus on the 2001 Colombini accident, which also occurred in New York. In addition, Gilk and Posh are actively digging up information about a 2023 case in California where a nurse was pinned to an MRI scanner by an ICU bed.
Look for new episodes on the AuntMinnie Podcast Network.
Editor's note: The imaging community and other listeners have been invited to contribute to the The Invisible Force via its Tip Line -- 631-MRI-TIPS (631-674-8477).
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Host
Tobias "Toby" Gilk is the founder of Gilk Radiology Consulting. An architect by training, he has spent over 20 years focusing on MRI safety, initially through the architecture and planning of MRI facilities, but growing into the technology, clinical practice, regulation, and economics of MRI safety. Gilk holds both MR Safety Officer (MRSO) and MR Safety Expert (MRSE) certifications from the American Board of Magnetic Resonance Safety (ABMRS). An evaluator of serious reportable events (SRE), he is also a volunteer member of the Technical Expert Panel (TEP) of the National Quality Forum, and co-author of "The Technologist MRI Safety Handbook."
Co-host
John Posh is an MRI educator, safety consultant, and safety auditor with over 35 years of experience in the field of MRI safety and education, working with outpatient facilities, hospitals, and universities. He owns Posh Education in Bethlehem, PA, and currently serves as global director of education and training for Aspect Imaging, chief academic officer-MRI at John Patrick University, and adjunct professor of medical imaging at Rush University.
This episode of "The Invisible Force" is brought to you by AuntMinnie and the AuntMinnie Podcast Network. You can also find it on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Check out AuntMinnie's full podcast library, including extras, on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
