Specialized equipment gains $1 million donation

Banner patients currently have to travel to Greeley for certain procedures

The Mckee Wellness Foundation is giving Banner For t Collins

Medical Center $1 million for specialized equipment for the hospital’s catheter lab.

The electrophysiology equipment will allow medical providers to perform ablation procedures in Larimer County — a treatment for which Banner heart patients currently have to travel to North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley.

The new technology will allow specialists to examine the electrical system of the hear t, diagnose heart rhythm problems and, when needed, to cauterize, freeze or burn tissue to treat the arrhythmia, according to information from Mckee. The capabilities include 3-D hear t mapping.

“It definitely makes it a lot less invasive, and it allows people to recover at home and to have some preventative services,” explained Allis Gilber t, executive director for the Mckee Foundation.

Information from Banner Health indicates an increasing number of patients over 65 and from Larimer County need these procedures.

In 2019, medical specialists with Banner performed 587 ablations using similar technology at

North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley, of whom 12% were over 65 and from Larimer County. In the first six months of 2020, that number was 253 procedures, with 22% from Larimer County.

With the new equipment, Banner Health is hiring two electrophysiology specialists to serve the program, which Gilbert said should be operational by mid-januar y.

Of the $1 million, $350,000 is from the Mckee Foundation’s heart-healthy initiatives, and the rest is from the foundation’s general fund.