The Department came into inception at the St. Margaret’s Hospital on Moore Road, Calabar. It was initially called the X-ray Department and was under the auspices of the Ministry of Health in the then-South Eastern State.
It was re-named Department of Radiology under the management of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) in 1979, when the Hospital became a federal institution that is affiliated with the University of Calabar, Calabar, Cross River State. The late Dr. Offiong Ani was the first Head of Department in 1980.
In 1992, Dr. Darlene Bassey became the first female Radiologist to be appointed HOD (1992 – 2000) and she was soon called upon again to pilot the affairs of the Department (2004 – 2008). During her tenure, several fellows were produced who subsequently, have been making significant input towards the continuous growth of the Department. In 2002, the Radiology Department moved to the permanent site under the management of the then Chief Medical Director (CMD), Professor Roland Ndoma Egba.
The Department started with 2 X-ray units, a Fluoroscopy unit, and one Ultrasound machine. In 2010, the Department was equipped with an array of modern machines (static and mobile X-ray machines, Fluoroscopy, Mammography, and Computed Tomography) sponsored by the Federal Government VAMED intervention. Recently, (2020/2021) the Department was re-equipped with new machines; two 4D Doppler ultrasound, one static computerized X-ray, a C-arm (Image intensifier), a mobile Digital X-ray, and 32 slice Computerized Tomography scan.