The Skiff Medical Center in Newton says it will soon have a piece of equipment no other hospital in the country has. Skiff C.E.O. Steve Long says the hospital will be the first to have a digital broadband M.R.I.

Long says the new machine “immerses you in an experience” so you can go through the M.R.I. He says patients tend to be in the traditional machines a long time, the machines are noisy and make people claustrophobic. But this new machine will help people get through it.

Long says the hospital cut a deal with the Phillipps Company to get a discount on the machine in exchange for demonstrating it to other hospitals. Long says they approach the company and said they could offer them an advantage with their location and size.

He says they are a five-hour drive on the interstate from every major city in the upper midwest, and the company liked that. The new equipment will be installed over the next several months.

By Randy Van, KCOB, Newton