By Selena Steele-Clough [1]
Belleville’s Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has reached the end of its lifespan. All working parts are to be replaced. Photo by Selena Steele-Clough, QNet News.
BELLEVILLE – Quinte Health Care’s [2] four hospitals are coming together for the “Re-Imagined Campaign” to raise money for a new magnetic resonance imaging machine in Belleville.
The hospital foundations in Trenton, Belleville, Picton and North Hastings launched this campaign to raise more than $1 million to keep the vital diagnostic service available.
The Prince Edward County Memorial Foundation [3]stated in a press release that the MRI machine at the Belleville General Hospital has reached the end of its lifespan. All the working parts, including the computer and software, have to be replaced so the service can remain effective for patients.
An MRI is medical imaging that uses a magnetic field and radio waves to create detailed images of the organs and tissues in someone’s body.
The machine at the Belleville General Hospital, originally installed in 2008, was purchased through the Tri-County Healthcare Foundation’s Imagine Campaign. [4]
The wait time to access Quinte Health Care’s MRI machine is one of the best in the province. It starts at nine days while the rest of the provincial target is 28 days.
The system to help run the MRI has to be replaced with all the MRI parts. Photo by Selena Steele-Clough, QNet News.
Each foundation is reaching out to patients and their families who have used an MRI for a diagnosis or treatments so they can get involved with the campaign. The government does not fund hospitals for medical equipment such as an MRI.
Wendy Warner, the executive director for the Trenton Memorial Hospital [5], told QNet News how vital it is for the community to raise money for medical equipment.
“We want to show how important it is that they support this equipment knowing how valuable it is to their own health care,” she said.
Warner added that hospitals could get funding to operate an MRI once it’s purchased.
Drew Brown from the Belleville General Hospital Foundation [6] said that he believes it’s not necessary for the government to fund medical equipment.
“With the cost of health care in Ontario being so high already, it makes sense for the community to participate in the quality of their health care,” Brown said.
Each executive director at all Quinte Health Care hospitals want as many people to get involved with this campaign.
“We usually always benefit from community events, so if people want to do just that to raise money for the machine than that would be fantastic,” said Penny Rolinskil from the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation.
If you would like to help fundraise for the “Re-Imagine Campaign” please contact your local health foundation office. [7]