Rates for the 2024-2025 academic year are $625/hr. Billing occurs for booked time through the Calpendo system.

The MRI Environment involves strong magnetic fields that can serious injury or death. Please understand and adhere to all the safety procedures including:

• Do NOT enter the scanner suite unless you are properly trained and certified by the Facility Director. The scanner suite includes the control room and equipment room outside the scanner.
• NEVER take a visitor or anyone who has not been properly screened into the scanner room itself.
• Do NOT bring any metal objects into the scanner room.
• NEVER leave a participant alone in any room of the scanner suite (including the control room).
• Faculty Principal Investigators are responsible for the safety and actions of their participants, students, and staff.

The MRI Environment involves strong magnetic fields that can serious injury or death. Please understand and adhere to all the safety procedures including:

• Do NOT enter the scanner suite unless you are properly trained and certified by the Facility Director. The scanner suite includes the control room and equipment room outside the scanner.
• NEVER take a visitor or anyone who has not been properly screened into the scanner room itself.
• Do NOT bring any metal objects into the scanner room.
• NEVER leave a participant alone in any room of the scanner suite (including the control room).
• Faculty Principal Investigators are responsible for the safety and actions of their participants, students, and staff.

The scanner suite is the room around the scanner that includes the control room and equipment room. Users are allowed scanner suite access (i.e., badge access) after they complete all levels of MRI training.

Anyone wishing to operate the scanner and have scanner suite access must complete all safety training and a certifying test once that person has attended and participated in at least 10 scan sessions and feels they are proficient in all scanning procedures.

Please see the User Access and Training Guidelines for more information.

MRI studies must be conducted by a minimum of two Level-1 or Level-2 users. If the study requires an investigator to leave during the scanning, you may need more people to ensure two trained personnel are always present.

Observers are allowed in the MRI control room as long as they are accompanied by a Level-1 or Level-2 user at all times. No one should ever go into the scanner room itself without being properly screened.

Common sense and courtesy are the rules of thumb. Be aware, note unsafe situations before they happen, and leave the scanner the way you would like it to be left for yourself. Please be guided by the following:

• Safety–The principle investigator of the study and their designated users are responsible to make sure the scan room is a safe environment. Never bring metal objects into the scan room. Please review screening forms carefully prior to the scanning session. If there is any question about exclusion criteria, simply do not scan. Make sure all volunteers are free of all metal before entering the scan room. Always provide hearing protection to volunteers. Never leave a participant alone in any room of the scanner suite. Follow guidelines that are taught in safety materials.
• Courtesy – Do not remove any cables or equipment from the scanner suite that do not belong to you. Return any equipment changes to their original state (i.e., projector screen adjustments). Do not leave random loose cables in the scan room, as they can cause artifacts and accidents.
• Cleanliness – Keep the control room clean (throw away garbage, ear plugs, etc). Pick up any loose cables or equipment (return to storage) when you are finished using them. Fold and put away linen, and cushions when finished using them. Place used linen and scrubs in the provided laundry bins. Keep the scrub shelves organized and neat. When you are finished with your experiment, the scan suite should look like you were never there.
• Do not go over your allotted time – The control room and scanner should be turned over to the next user group at the beginning of their session. This means you should leave time at the end of your slot to remove your participant and tidy the room for the next group. Even if you get started late, your session must end on time.
• Responsibilities – As well as what is mentioned above, responsibilities also include logging scan time, filling out and filing screening forms, and backing up your data. Please report any scanner issues or broken equipment using the Calpendo system.

The scanner we use has no history of clinical use and the sequences are not meant for clinical evaluation. Your consent makes clear that we do not use the sequences for detection of clinical conditions and, if asked, you should verbally make clear that we do not examine the scans for abnormalities. It is important that we do not imply in any way that the scans will be checked or evaluated by an expert for the purposes of clinical evaluation.

On occasion, investigators may notice a finding that seems abnormal. If this occurs you must report the finding directly to Brock Kirwan (bkirwan@sas.upenn.edu). Please do NOT tell the volunteer about the finding until it has been reviewed, as you may cause undue alarm and anxiety.

The scanner we use has no history of clinical use and the sequences are not meant for clinical evaluation. Your consent makes clear that we do not use the sequences for detection of clinical conditions and, if asked, you should verbally make clear that we do not examine the scans for abnormalities. It is important that we do not imply in any way that the scans will be checked or evaluated by an expert for the purposes of clinical evaluation.

On occasion, investigators may notice a finding that seems abnormal. If this occurs you must report the finding directly to Brock Kirwan (bkirwan@sas.upenn.edu). Please do NOT tell the volunteer about the finding until it has been reviewed, as you may cause undue alarm and anxiety.

You can only scan subjects for research studies if you have proper IRB approval. All individuals running scans as designates of a principal investigator must be listed on the IRB approval associated with the study. It is the responsibility of the principal investigator to make sure that safety and other procedures are followed. It is also the responsibility of the principal investigator to ensure that yearly IRB re-approvals are obtained on time. You cannot scan if your IRB has expired!

The Facility uses Calpendo (https://upenn-mindcore.calpendo.com) for scheduling and logging Facility resources including MRI scans. Please reach out to Brock Kirwan (bkirwan@sas.upenn.edu) to request a Calpendo user account. There is no restriction on how far in advance users are allowed to schedule resources. Note that MRI scans must be cancelled at least 48 hrs in advance to avoid being charged for the scan time. MRI scans cancelled within the 48-hr window will be charged to the original account unless another user schedules the time.

MRI data are automatically transferred to the Mac workstation in the console room. It is the individual research group’s responsibility to back up their data from there. The Facility strives to maintain data but does not guarantee data backups after MRI scanning has been completed. Always back up your data!

Training on how to retrieve and transfer image data from the scanner and Facility computers will be provided during Level 2 user training outlined later in this document. It is anticipated that most large data sets will be transferred for analysis and archiving outside of the Facility using investigator-provided portable drives.

Appropriate care must be taken when copying and transferring human image data to ensure that all applicable HIPAA Privacy Rule policies are followed. It is the sole responsibility of the principal investigator of a given study to ensure that data acquired during a study is handled appropriately and ethically. Failure to comply may result in revocation of scan privileges.

The Facility Director will be in charge of installing all devices in the scan room.

Under no circumstances should anyone bring a device into the room without the Director’s direct assistance. All devices, pieces of equipment (no matter how apparently benign) must be reviewed for their (1) safety for use in the scanner environment, (2) that their presence in the scanner room will not adversely affect the quality of image data, and (3) that they can be effectively and safely removed and stored. For instance, it is very important that all electrical equipment and cabling be shielded and kept as far from the magnetic field as possible. Just because something is shielded does not mean that it is not still magnetic. We are happy to try to accommodate your needs as best we can. If you experience a problem with any stimulus equipment please notify the Facility Director right away.