Almost $800K raised for advanced MRI

Last week’s Kelowna General Hospital Foundation Day of Giving was a great one for people in the Okanagan who will need medical resonance imaging, or MRIs, in the future.

The one-day campaign raised almost $800,000 toward the purchase of a newer, better MRI machine called a 3T MRI.

The call to action began at 6 a.m. last Wednesday morning. By 11:57 p.m. that evening, when the last donation was made online, over $794,606.36 had been collected for the new machine.

KGH Foundation CEO Allison Young said the support from the local community is uplifting given the current challenges facing the health system.

“It is such a privilege to witness the generosity of this community in action,” said Young. “We are still grappling with many challenges in our health system. It is heartwarming and honestly, humbling, that people are willingly and enthusiastically stepping up to help where it matters most – right here at home. We are so grateful, and so are our health care staff.”

Dr. Michael Partrick, a radiologist at Kelowna General Hospital, said the Day of Giving campaign helps to build awareness of the importance of good imaging in health care.

“Not only do we have the opportunity to acquire this exceptional technology, but the publicity around the cause has really helped people understand the important role that medical imaging and radiology plays in health care,” he said. It’s been a much-needed boost to our department’s morale.”

The 3T MRI has a stronger magnet and makes better images of organs and soft tissue than other types of MRI do.

It is used to make images of the brain, the spine, the soft tissue of joints and the inside of bones and blood vessels.

The new machine a life-saving diagnostic tool, Young said, and will reduce MRI wait times.

“This puts us that much closer to our goal of $5 million to purchase the 3T MRI, which will increase capacity at KGH, impact waitlists and improve patient care across multiple health care disciplines,” he said.

Since it began seven years ago, and including last week’s total, the KGH Foundation Day of Giving has raised over $4.5 million in support of Kelowna General Hospital and other community health care initiatives.