World Patient Safety Day 2026
Multi‑Medix is recognising the healthcare professionals, clinical teams, scientists and engineers working together to support safe, high-quality patient care.
Ultrasound is used for diagnosis, screening, treatment and ongoing monitoring across almost every area of healthcare. Identifying ultrasound faults is an important part of maintaining confidence in the equipment used.
Up to one in three ultrasound probes may be defective.
Research suggests that up to one in three ultrasound probes in clinical use may be defective. Ultrasound probe faults involving individual elements, cables or the transducer face may not always be apparent during everyday scanning, but they can affect equipment performance and image quality.
The finding comes from a multicentre survey of ultrasound probes by Nick Dudley and David Woolley, published in Ultrasound in 2016.
Regular ultrasound probe testing and validation, supported by effective user checks, can help teams identify potential problems earlier and make informed decisions about investigation, repair or replacement.
Making Ultrasound QA Accessible
Multi‑Medix was founded by former NHS clinical scientists and clinical technologists with a mission to improve access to practical, independent ultrasound quality assurance.
Healthcare teams trust Multi‑Medix for specialist advice, training and testing that helps them identify equipment issues and support safer, more confident scanning.
Our work extends beyond testing. We want healthcare professionals to understand ultrasound QA, feel confident carrying it out and have the knowledge and tools needed to make it part of routine practice.
We have delivered ultrasound QA webinars with leading professionals, including Dr Nick Dudley and Gillian Harrison, helping an international audience understand how to establish user QA programmes.
We also created the Multi‑Medix Diagnostic Ultrasound QA Manual and Knowledge Portal. Copies of the manual were distributed to hospitals across the UK, while practical videos provide step-by-step guidance on performing QA checks.
Training and supporting healthcare teams
Through ultrasound QA training, Probe Care Essentials courses and hospital visits, we help healthcare professionals develop practical QA skills.
Training helps users recognise possible ultrasound probe faults, carry out routine checks and understand when a finding should be escalated. Our QA Everyday programme can also help departments establish a system suited to their equipment, staff and working environment.
Research, advocacy and innovation
Multi‑Medix continues to invest in the science underpinning ultrasound QA. Funded projects with the National Physical Laboratory have strengthened our acoustic measurement capability and supported the development of new ultrasound phantom materials.
We also welcomed the Collaborative Ultrasound Manifesto, developed by leading professional organisations. Its emphasis on equipment governance, quality assurance, education, scientific support and protected time for user QA reflects priorities that Multi‑Medix has long advocated.
Our latest development is MULTI‑Mode, which brings together the MM-1010 phantom, guided image capture and software-assisted analysis.
The Multi‑Medix app guides users through QA testing step by step. It enables teams to record results, receive an instant HealthScore, maintain digital equipment records and monitor performance over time.
MULTI‑Mode builds on everything we have learned through research, training, hospital visits and ultrasound probe testing: quality assurance must be robust, but it must also be practical enough to become part of everyday working life.
World Patient Safety Day reminds us that patient safety is a shared responsibility. It depends on skilled professionals, reliable systems, appropriate equipment and a culture of continuous improvement.
Through structured quality assurance advice and training, Multi‑Medix helps healthcare teams monitor ultrasound equipment performance, supporting confidence in every scan.
Because behind every ultrasound system, every probe and every scan is a patient.
Would you like to find out more about Ultrasound Quality Assurance?
If you are concerned about ultrasound probe faults or want to strengthen your equipment checks, explore our probe testing, QA training, and MULTI‑Mode, or contact Multi‑Medix directly.