Family CARE Grant Funds “Phantom” for Special Thyroid Biopsy Training to Increase Capacity
Published Monday, September 14, 2026
Michelle Crawford, Ultrasound Technologist at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, with the donor-funded “phantom” used for specialized thyroid biopsy training.
Up to 60% of the adult population will have a least one thyroid nodule or lump. If the features of a nodule are concerning in any way or if the doctor suspects thyroid cancer, they commonly order a biopsy using a procedure called fine-needle aspiration. Specialists insert a thin hollow needle to collect cells from the thyroid, which are sent to the lab for testing to determine if they're cancerous.
The thyroid is butterfly-shaped gland at the base of the neck. Traditionally, a radiologist performs this delicate biopsy using ultrasound to guide the needle to the thyroid nodule. But thanks to a frontline staff member at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, a new program trains ultrasound technologists to perform these same speciality biopsies.
More specialists mean more biopsy capacity, helping reduce wait times for patients – and you helped make it happen! Your donations to the Family CARE Grant Program brought an important training mannequin to our Hospital so that ultrasound technologists can learn and practice this procedure before performing it on patients.
“Radiologists have busy schedules, and patient referral volumes for thyroid biopsies are going up,” said Katherine (Kati) Tuomi, Manager, Diagnostic Imaging at our Hospital. “Shifting even some of those biopsies to be performed by ultrasound technologists can help patients be tested in a timely manner. With advanced training, it's well within an ultrasound technologist's scope of practice.”
Training is the key word here. Diagnostic Imaging purchased a training mannequin called a “phantom,” 100% funded with your help.
Michelle Crawford, a registered ultrasound technologist at our Hospital, not only came up with the idea, she became the first ultrasound technologist in Thunder Bay to perform these biopsies on her own in July. She read about a program happening at the University Health Network (UHN) in an academic journal and wondered if our Hospital could build something similar.
Crawford completed all her theoretical coursework through the Michener Institute including online classes here at home, with local radiologists overseeing her hands-on training and testing using the phantom.
“Training on the phantom made me much more confident doing the procedure,” Crawford said. “It's very similar to a human being. It allowed me practice every step of thyroid biopsy, from planning a path for the needle that avoids nerves and arteries, to the ultrasound-guided procedure itself.”
The phantom also simulates in near-perfect detail the density of the various layers of the human body so that the ultrasound technologists can literally get a feel for the procedure.
It's not widely done in Ontario – in fact, our Hospital may be one of a kind outside of the GTA that has ultrasound technologists performing this procedure. So far, Crawford is the only ultrasound technologist in Thunder Bay trained to do thyroid biopsies, but there will be more to come. Tuomi said they are currently planning next steps for the program so that it is open to all ultrasound technologists at the Hospital who express interest.
“This is a really big step for the North,” Tuomi said. “It expands our capacity and, most importantly, supports patients.”
The Family CARE Grant (Care Advancement Recommended by Employees) empowers frontline staff by funding their ideas to bring them to life. The program is entirely funded by your donations!
Learn more about the Family CARE Grant program including other great projects it helped fund and how to donate at: healthsciencesfoundation.ca/familycare
Article by Graham Strong