The countdown is on to December 7th and the biggest fundraiser for the Lloydminster Region Health Foundation as they aim to raise half a million dollars to purchase specialized medical equipment.
The Gift to Health Digital Stream will feature 24 community members running on their treadmills for 12 hours straight, in a virtual effort combination to hit the monetary goal, while covering 2000 kilometres.
The three pieces of equipment being sought for the local hospital are a Mobile Digital Radiography unit, a Portable Ultrasound unit with echo extension and a Mobile C-arm.
CEO Malcolm Radke says the prospect of the new medical tools will mean enhanced mobility for diagnostics.
“The two most critical pieces of equipment are the Mobile C-arm and the Mobile Digital Radiography. So essentially what those two items do, they make our Imaging Department mobile and versatile to travel throughout the hospital. So as opposed to needing to wheel patients down to the Imaging Department and then sending them back to the medical floor.”
Radke says this will reduce the wait for doctors to see these image results as the medical team can see the images live at the patient’s bedside and make a diagnosis right there.
The Mobile C-arm, Radke says will allow one cast to be done for a broken limb in the emergency room.
“The ER doctors can wheel it right into the ER room to take a look at a broken limb and get an accurate scan right there on the spot, instead of needing to do temporary casting and get the person into the Imaging Department, and waiting for the results to come in, and then cutting the cast, and then resetting it and recasting it. Now they just have to do one cast, they can set it all properly right on the spot, right there in the ER room the first time around.”
Also the orthopedic surgeons will be able to do more local hip, knee and joint surgeries with the Mobile C-arm.
He added the ultrasound equipment will have benefits in getting imaging scans for the children and babies  in pediatrics.
Radke expressed his gratitude to the runners and as well community groups who are all pitching in with various efforts to reach the fundraising goal.
More information can be found on the LRHF website and as well the LRHF Instagram page.
Residents can view the event on December 7th from 8 a.m. on the LRHF website or on their Facebook page.