Episode 8 of "The Invisible Force" podcast on the AuntMinnie Podcast Network focuses on the outpatient imaging center implicated in the fatal MRI accident on July 16, 2025, in Westbury, NY, after which Keith McAllister died. And in this episode, details about the accident take a surprising turn.
Hosts and MRI safety experts Tobias "Toby" Gilk and John Posh begin by connecting numerous corporate affiliations, such as facility owners and imaging equipment service providers, that they have been able to identify during their investigation.
"From the beginning, there was some real confusion about who they [Nassau Open MRI] were," Posh explained in Episode 8. With more than one Nassau County in the U.S. and more than one Open MRI in a Nassau County, one might have been led to believe the imaging center was Florida-based when the accident occurred.
"The fact that there were two seemingly unrelated MRI providers with the same name caused a boatload of confusion," Gilk added. Digging into the New York Secretary of State's website, Gilk and Posh found many names associated with doing business at the Nassau Open MRI in New York, and you will hear them during this episode.
In a new development, "when you call the company's phone number, they're now answering it as Red Tree Radiology," Posh noted. A bit of further digging revealed that Red Tree Radiology owned the MRI scanner at Nassau Open MRI -- at least they did in 2015, Gilk continued.
"Given that the people at the corporate office that Toby talked with on the morning after the accident seemed oblivious to the fact that it happened, maybe the corporate office types aren't the ones we really should be talking to if we want to understand what happened," Posh noted.
A dramatization opens this episode. Surprisingly, it was based on an encounter with a man claiming to be the MRI technologist captured in closed-circuit security camera footage of the McAllister accident, according to Gilk. The exchange happened at ARMRIT, the American Registry of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists' annual conference.
The second half of the episode unfolds with details of how the accident happened -- as they were gathered during and after the ARMRIT encounter. Gilk and Posh tackle each detail piece by piece.
- Who had access to the controlled access area around the time of the incident?
- What steps did the service engineer take to try and free Mr. McAllister?
- When did the magnet quench?
"That's where the story gets weird ... weirder," Gilk said. Listen now.
First though, Gilk and Posh have speculated that there were no state or federal lawsuits filed because the McAllister family's attorneys were trying to negotiate a settlement prior to filing. A lawsuit was filed April 7. Listen for the new details at the end of the show.
Gilk and Posh also revisit the issue of accreditation for outpatient imaging centers, generally.
"Nassau Open MRI apparently did not accept Medicare or Medicaid payments, so they were off the hook for having to comply with any accreditation standards for anything, including safety," Posh explained.
What of licensing by the state? The rules vary by state for outpatient imaging providers, according to Gilk.
"New York is one of many states that's very hands-off in its approach to safety standards for outpatient imaging providers," Gilk explained. "If you're getting your MRI at an outpatient facility, in pretty much every state in the U.S., there'll be zero state oversight over those risks." Yet, when it comes to ionizing radiation, the prospects are much different.
"If, hypothetically, Nassau Open MRI also had a bone densitometry, or DEXA machine, the risks of which are so tiny they're almost too small to quantify, [the Bureau of Environmental Radiation Protection] BERP would regularly be checking up on this machine, making sure it was working per specifications and that operational safety protocols were in place," Posh said.
Episode 8 closes Act 2 of the series, according to Gilk. Listen now.
Stay tuned for Act 3, when Gilk and Posh fully reconstruct the events based on all the details they have learned since July 16, 2025, what ought to have been done differently, and what might come of this terrible accident in terms of MRI safety protections looking forward.
Editor's note: The imaging community and other listeners have been invited to contribute to the investigation through The Invisible Force Tip Line -- 631-MRI-TIPS (631-674-8477).
Host
Tobias "Toby" Gilk is the founder of Gilk Radiology Consulting. An architect by training, he has spent over 20 years focusing on MRI safety, initially through the architecture and planning of MRI facilities, but growing into the technology, clinical practice, regulation, and economics of MRI safety. Gilk holds both MR Safety Officer (MRSO) and MR Safety Expert (MRSE) certifications from the American Board of Magnetic Resonance Safety (ABMRS). An evaluator of serious reportable events (SRE), he is also a volunteer member of the Technical Expert Panel (TEP) of the National Quality Forum, and co-author of "The Technologist MRI Safety Handbook."
Co-host
John Posh is an MRI educator, safety consultant, and safety auditor with over 35 years of experience in the field of MRI safety and education, working with outpatient facilities, hospitals, and universities. He owns Posh Education in Bethlehem, PA, and currently serves as global director of education and training for Aspect Imaging, chief academic officer-MRI at John Patrick University, and adjunct professor of medical imaging at Rush University.
This episode of "The Invisible Force" is brought to you by AuntMinnie and the AuntMinnie Podcast Network. You can also find it on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Check out AuntMinnie's full podcast library, including extras, on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
