NTU Hospital and Bayer Taiwan Collaborate to Establish a Next-Generation Smart Contrast Media Management Model for Computed Tomography

Advancing Smart Healthcare and ESG Sustainability Toward an Asia-Pacific Center of Excellence

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Taipei, In response to the trends of population aging and the advancement of precision medicine, medical imaging has become a critical foundation for disease diagnosis, treatment planning, and clinical decision-making. National Taiwan University Hospital (NTU Hospital) and Bayer Taiwan Co., Ltd. (Bayer Taiwan) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on August 12, 2026, to jointly develop a next-generation smart contrast media management model for computed tomography (CT). The MOU was signed by NTU Hospital Superintendent Chong-Jen Yu and Kelvin Wong, General Manager of Bayer’s Radiology business unit for Asia-Pacific and Japan, representing both organizations.

Through the integration of intelligent contrast media administration settings, hospital information systems, structured data governance, and data analytics applications, the collaboration aims to comprehensively enhance imaging quality, patient safety, and clinical workflow efficiency. Meanwhile, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles will be incorporated into clinical workflows, with the goal of establishing an Asia-Pacific Center of Excellence for Smart CT Contrast Media Management. “This initiative seeks to create a future-oriented imaging healthcare model characterized by intelligence, precision, safety, and sustainability.” highlighted by Kelvin Wong, Head of Radiology, Bayer APAC & Japan

With the growing demand for medical imaging examinations driven by population aging and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, the utilization, safety management, and documentation of contrast media have become essential components of imaging quality management. NTU Hospital noted that the contrast media injection process in CT examinations not only directly affects image quality and patient safety but also plays an important role in optimizing healthcare resource utilization and environmental sustainability.

The next-generation smart contrast media management model promoted through this collaboration represents more than an upgrade in medical equipment. It introduces comprehensive innovation across clinical workflows, information integration, data governance, and sustainable healthcare management. The initiative aims to establish a smart imaging care model that can serve as a reference for healthcare institutions both domestically and internationally.

The collaboration will focus on several key areas, including intelligent contrast media injection workflows, deep integration with hospital information systems, development of structured injection databases, data-driven workflow optimization, and ESG sustainability management. Through intelligent contrast media administration settings, personalized injection strategies can be developed based on patients’ body characteristics, examination requirements, and clinical conditions. While maintaining diagnostic quality and examination safety, the approach will improve contrast media utilization efficiency, reduce unnecessary consumption and waste, and gradually establish a comprehensive and standardized injection workflow.

In terms of ESG sustainability practices, the next-generation multi-patient contrast media injection system can effectively reduce the use of contrast media, disposable supplies, and medical waste. It also helps minimize the potential environmental impact of iodinated contrast media and residual pharmaceuticals on ecosystems and water resources, further advancing the concept of green healthcare.

At the same time, the system automatically generates complete and structured injection records, including contrast media dosage, injection parameters, time records, and adverse events or abnormalities. This significantly improves workflow standardization, data integrity, and traceability, while reducing risks associated with manual documentation and repeated data entry. The structured data collected will also provide an important foundation for future quality management and artificial intelligence (AI) applications.

Ya-Fang Chen, Director of the Department of Medical Imaging at NTU Hospital, stated that as demand for imaging services continues to grow and healthcare workforce challenges increase, medical institutions must leverage smart technologies to improve operational efficiency and enable healthcare professionals to focus more on high-value patient care.

“The next-generation smart CT contrast media management model can simplify the processes of contrast media preparation, administration, and documentation, reducing repetitive administrative tasks and manual data entry. This allows nursing staff to devote more attention to patient identification verification, allergy history assessment, injection safety monitoring, and examination care, further enhancing patient safety and overall quality of care,” said Dr. Chen.

She further emphasized that intelligent contrast media administration settings and structured data management not only improve medication precision and clinical efficiency but also contribute to reducing contrast media consumption, disposable materials, and medical waste, truly integrating ESG principles into daily healthcare practices.

NTU Hospital stated that it will continue to combine clinical expertise, digital technologies, and workflow innovation to advance smart contrast media management, patient safety, data governance, and ESG sustainable development. By progressively establishing the Asia-Pacific Center of Excellence for Smart CT Contrast Media Management, NTU Hospital will work with industry partners to promote innovative models of smart imaging healthcare, strengthen Taiwan’s international competitiveness in smart healthcare, precision medicine, and sustainable healthcare, and set a new benchmark for smart healthcare development across the Asia-Pacific region.