As December nears the Castlegar and District Hospital Foundation gears up for Lighting Up the Health Centre, with it’s PLEDGE DAY coming up Friday, December 7th. The Foundation is raising funds for a ‘Portable Diagnostic Ultrasound Imaging System’ and other areas of greatest need at the Castlegar Health Centre and Talarico Place.
The Health Centre had a Portable Diagnostic Ultrasound for many years and it has served us well. But age is catching up with it and technology has advanced since it was purchased. The new equipment will provide much better visualization of the body structure and performance. The system transmits ultrasound energy into various parts of the patient’s body to obtain ultrasound images. Doctors use the ultrasound images as important tools in the assessment and diagnosis of both adult and pediatric patients. Information is provided on many different aspects of the body including the heart and it’s structure and performance.
The abdomen and all the organs can be assessed for the presence or absence of abnormalities. It can also be used for fetal imaging or assessment of issues during pregnancy. Being available locally, without the need for additional travel, results in improved patient comfort.
In addition, we’re being asked to fund an ‘Exam/Medical Headlight’ to replace a well-used one previously in the Emergency Department. The doctors need it for examination and suturing of lacerations, especially in awkward places. The robust features of the light source will make it much easier to visualize wounds properly providing multiple levels of clear, bright-white illumination.
Rounding out the equipment requests of us is a ‘ZEISS Slit Lamp and Motorized Table’. This is a microscope which provided a stereoscopic view of the eye structures in detail, enabling anatomical diagnoses to be made for a variety of eye conditions; no doubt will be a valuable asset in the Emergency Department.
Sophisticated equipment is expensive but worth the investment if it can help those in our community. Your help is needed! Join us in the lobby of the health centre on 10th street in Castlegar on Friday, December 7th between 9am and 2pm. We’ll have refreshments, door prizes, entertainment and directors on hand to chat with. Do come out and join us for Light Up 2018!
Remember, your donation boomerangs back to you!