Conditional 1 - An MRI Safety Podcast

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. This episode returns our focus to radiofrequency heating and how we can quantify it using B1+RMS. What is B1+? What does RMS mean? How can we reduce it if we need to? Please be aware that this episode does contain potentially disturbing discussion of the recent death of Keith McAllister in New York State. Conditional 1 is now available on Youtube, ...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. Keith McAllister of Long Island, New York died on the 17th July 2025 following an incident involving an MRI scanner and a heavy ferrous chain. This episode will focus on this horrifying event, what we know so far, and the potential for systemic change. Conditional 1 is now available on Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts as well as numerous other podcast pl...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. It's been two years since I last released an episode of Conditional 1 so welcome to what I’m optimistically calling Season 2 of ‘Conditional 1’. This episode will focus on the time-varying radiofrequency magnetic fields (B1) and it's interactions with the human body. What is SAR? How high can it go? What affects how hot a patient gets when they h...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. With MRI Safety Week upon us once again, this episode I'm going to tell the stories of those whose loss should motivate us to do better, and talk about the lessons that should be learned from past mistakes. Join me on Conditional 1, available on Spotify, iTunes or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Music: Purple Planet Music Support the show

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. This episode I’m going to be carrying on from Episode 5 - Lost in Translation and talking about torque and it's relationship with the static magnetic field (B0). Not only that, I'm going to discuss Lenz force and also bioeffects arising from exposure to the static magnetic field such as vertigo and the magneto-hydromagnetic effect. Join me on Conditio...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. This episode I’m going to be taking things back to basics and looking at one of the fundamentals, not just of MRI safety but MRI in general. I’m talking about the ‘M’ in MRI – magnetism. More specifically the static magnetic field. I'm going to focus on the static magnetic field (B0) and the static magnetic field gradient (dB/dx) and their ...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. This time I’m going to be talking about an aspect of MRI Safety that has always been one of my favourites, throughout the 20+ years of my practice. I am of course, talking about Intra-orbital foreign bodies or IOFBs. In this episode I hope to achieve three things. First, I’ll give a brief overview of the relevant anatomy of the eye, and it’s associated...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. Episode 3 continues to focus on the safety checking of patients (and others) entering the MRI unit. Why we do it, how we do it, and when we do it. Even after splitting this into two parts it's not an exhaustive look at the process and there is always more to say. That being the case I would like to ask for your help. Do you have any funny s...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. Episode 2 focuses on the safety checking of patients (and others) entering the MRI unit. Why we do it, how we do it, and when we do it. Even after splitting this into two parts it's not an exhaustive look at the process and there is always more to say. That being the case I would like to ask for your help. Do you have any funny safety check...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. In this first episode "The Colombini Incident", I’m going to be talking about what is probably the single most defining moment in the history of MRI safety, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the disastrous event that inspired a paradigm shift in how we approach MRI safety. I am of course, talking about the tragic death of Michael Colombini, a 6 ye...

Hello and welcome to Conditional 1. My name is James Whittaker and I am an MRI Technologist from New Zealand with an interest in MRI Safety. In the first episode, I’m going to be talking about what is probably the single most defining moment in the history of MRI safety, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the disastrous event that inspired a paradigm shift in how we approach MRI safety. I am of course, talking about the tragic death of Michael Colombini, a 6 year old boy from New York. ...