HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (WSAV) — Beaufort Memorial Hospital is branching out to Hilton Head Island Imaging and has now joined the Beaufort Memorial Hospital umbrella.

Russell Baxley, the hospital’s president and CEO said, it was a no-brainer because of how many patients live on the island.

“Now we have the Beaufort Memorial Imaging Center on the island of Hilton Head, which keeps care closer to home for the patients that use our services and our facilities,” Baxley said.

The center will do mammograms, X-rays and CT scans among other things. Also, the hospital wants to add more services in the next phase of improvements.

“One of the things we are looking to immediately add, for example, is MRI services and capability,” Baxley said. “And we hope to do that within the next three to six months. And that will just be another opportunity to  increase access to patients on the island.”

October is breast cancer awareness month. Baxley said the center’s opening timing is perfect. Just in time for you to get a potentially life-saving exam.

“We run a number of programs during Breast Health Awareness Month to include $99 mammograms and that’s run across all of our women’s imaging centers,” Baxley said. “We’re going to expand that here, which is an opportunity for us to allow for that program to be expanded to all patients in Beaufort County.”

Also, the hospital plans to keep working with volunteers in medicine to give those who can’t afford health care the treatment they need. Now planted on Hilton Head, with time, Baxley hopes Beaufort Memorial can cater to what patients on Hilton Head need most.

“Anywhere we go, we try to understand the health care needs of the community. We try to be a part of that community,” Baxley said. “And as we better understand what is needed in the community, we can then grow with the community in the appropriate way, as we’ve done in Okatie and Bluffton, as we’ve done in Beaufort, right? Just continuing that right there on Hilton Head Island.”

The Beaufort Memorial Island Imaging Center will open its doors on Monday. It’s the first facility the hospital has opened on Hilton Head and they hope it’s just the beginning of what’s to come.