Doric instructions available to some patients with MRI appointments in Aberdeen

A revamp in technology has allowed some patients with an MRI appointment in Aberdeen to be able to hear instructions in Doric.

The University of Aberdeen’s MRI scanner, which has contributed to several key research discoveries over the years, recently had a major upgrade worth £1.2million.

Other languages are also available, including English, French, Spanish, Mandarin and Arabic, as the Phillips Scanner, based within the Lilian Sutton Building, has been pre-programmed with 17 languages.

There is now clearer imaging, more accurate diagnosis and a 30% faster operating speed.

A collaboration with the University’s Elphinstone Institute has paved the way for the scanner to issue instructions in Doric.

Nearly 50% of residents in Aberdeenshire identify as Scots speakers, with 36% in Aberdeen City using the lanugage, while that figure is 45% among residents in Moray.

The Scottish average is 30%.

Dr Gordon Waiter, who is a senior lecturer and brain imaging expert at the University of Aberdeen, said he hoped it might make some patients feel more comfortable in what can be a daunting environment.

He said: "The option to hear instructions in different languages is only a small part of this major overhaul which will bring massive benefits to both our imaging research capability and patients across the North of Scotland.

"But we’re aware that coming for an MRI scan can be unnerving, so anything that makes the experience more relaxing is welcome.

"As someone from the North-East myself I am proud of our distinct dialect of Scots and it’s great that advances in technology allow us to offer this degree of flexibility, whether it is for people who speak Doric, or indeed any of the other 17 languages available."

Recent research by Dr Thomas McKean from the Elphinstone Institute at the university has explored how people with dementia experience second language attrition, eventually leaving them best able to communicate in their native tongue.

Dr McKean said: "People living with dementia find comfort in the familiar, the known, so hearing our mother tongue in a stressful medical situation can only be a benefit, helping to relax patients at a difficult time."

Simon Gall, Public Engagement Officer with the Institute, recorded the phrases and has seen this phenomenon first-hand.

He said: "My grandmother, a Doric speaker who has dementia, struggles now with communication in English, but when carers and medical professionals use Scots, she is much more responsive.

"Of course not everyone that comes for an MRI scan will be in this situation, but as well as helping those that are.

"I’m learning through my own research on the use of North-East Scots in public health communications during the pandemic, that, for many, the language can reach people in ways that English does not, invoking, as it often does, notions of home, safety, and stability in very uncertain times.

"The uncertainty of receiving an MRI scan is perhaps a comparable experience on an individual level and the sound of Doric instructions may invoke positive feelings in those who hear them.

"It’s great that Dr Waiter decided to make use of the facility to allow us to record instructions in Doric and if my voice can put even one person at ease.

"I am delighted."