San Antonio Regional Hospital Invests in Advanced Imaging to Improve Patient Access and Speed Diagnoses

UPLAND, CA – September 14, 2026 −  The Inland Empire (San Bernardino and Riverside counties) continues to face a broad shortage of healthcare resources, including imaging equipment and the trained professionals to operate them. As one of California’s most medically underserved regions, demand for diagnostic imaging such as MRIs and CT scans often outpaces availability, leading to delays in care. In response, San Antonio Regional Hospital has been steadily investing in advanced imaging technology to expand capacity, reduce appointment backlogs, and help patients receive faster diagnoses and earlier treatment.

The hospital recently acquired a Siemens SOMATOM FORCE CT scanner for it’s main hospital campus, bringing one of the most advanced CT technologies in the region to Upland. Comparable systems are located as far away as Palm Springs and Los Angeles, making this a significant upgrade for local access to high-end imaging.

The SOMATOM FORCE is a dual-source CT scanner that excels in diagnosing cardiac conditions and other applications in which timing is essential. Known for its exceptional speed, it can scan an entire heart in just a quarter of a heartbeat (66 milliseconds), delivering high-resolution images while maintaining lower radiation doses for a variety of types of imaging studies, including neurology applications, orthopedics, and spinal imaging, among others.

Beyond its technical capabilities, the system improves the patient experience. Faster scan times make exams more comfortable, while lower contrast dye requirements and a wider bore design allow for safer and more accessible imaging for a broader range of patients. Most importantly, the increased speed and efficiency enable the hospital to scan more patients each day—reducing wait times, accelerating results for physicians, and allowing diagnosis and treatment to begin sooner, when they are most effective.

In addition to the new CT scanner, San Antonio is in the process of adding a new nuclear medicine scanner at its main campus, and a third MRI in its Lewis Center of Aging in Rancho Cucamonga, a Siemens Altea MRI. The new Center will include an Outpatient Services area offering a full range of imaging services, including CT scans, MRI scans, X-rays, DEXA scans, and ultrasounds. Services will be available beginning September 14, 2026.

San Antonio Regional Hospital in Upland, California is a 363-bed, nonprofit, acute care hospital that combines excellent clinical care with exceptional compassion. The award-winning hospital offers a comprehensive range of general medical and surgical services, along with the latest technological advances in cardiac care, cancer care, orthopedics, neurosciences, women’s health, maternity and neonatal care, and emergency services. Founded in 1907, with only 18 beds and 5 physicians, San Antonio Regional Hospital is continually growing with its community and is now recognized as a premier regional medical facility with satellite locations across the rapidly expanding Inland Empire. Given its broad geographic reach and the depth and breadth of its services and programs, supported by the latest medical science and technology, San Antonio is a hospital of the future, offering state-of-the-art healthcare services in a healing environment focused on the patient and family. To learn more, visit SARH.org.