The Nunatsiavut Government is pleased with the results of what it calls the successful trial of a portable X-ray unit in Hopedale.

The government says although X-rays have been around for more than a century, they remain largely unavailable in many rural and remote regions.

A working group consisting of experts from the health authority, the provincial Department of Health, the Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists and Indigenous Services Canada was established a couple of years ago. It identified a suitable solution for x-ray services on the coast of Labrador, thus the decision to do the clinical trial at the Hopedale Community Clinic.

Nunatsiavut is calling the trial a “complete success” with several patients receiving x-ray services over two days instead of having to travel to Happy Valley-Goose Bay for the service.

They’re hoping that the service can be expanded to other communities.