Tree of Life campaign raises $1.5 Million for new CT Scanner

Annual Tree of Life campaign raises $1.5 Million for new CT Scanner for CGMH.

Jan 18th, COLLINGWOOD ON: Collingwood Hospital Foundation has raised over $1.5 million in their annual Tree of Life for a new CT scanner for the Collingwood G&M Hospital. With focus on CGMH frontline staff, the Foundation inspired the community to support the campaign in reaching their $1million goal, half of the total cost needed to bring the new CT Scanner to the current hospital.

“We are extraordinarily grateful to this community for helping us raise more than $1.5 million during the Tree of Life campaign.” says Alison Smith, Director of Operations & Communications, “We are pleased to announce that due to the incredible generosity of our donors, we have now met our total goal of $2.1 million needed to purchase a new CT scanner for CGMH.”

Every year, the Tree of Life campaign brings together the caring and compassionate communities of South Georgian Bay to fund vital equipment for CGMH. “The kindness of this community never ceases to amaze our team,” says Maria Borges, Tree of Life campaign lead, “there is such a spirit of generosity here in South Georgian Bay and we are fortunate enough to witness this magic unfold.”

To bring the best possible Diagnostic Imaging technology to South Georgian Bay, the Foundation was tasked with raising $2.15 million to cover the capital costs for the CT scanner replacement and installation. The current CT scanner is failing and desperately needs to be replaced so that CGMH can meet the 1,000 requests for CT diagnosis that they get every single month. Since 2017, CGMH has seen wait times grow by 30% due to the increased demand as well as an increase in maintenance and repairs to try to keep up.

After a brief moment to reflect and celebrate, the team at the Foundation are heads down again and working to launch a $5 million campaign to bring an MRI to CGMH. This will not only cover the cost of the machine but the installation and housing. The Ministry of Health and Ontario Health recently announced an operating funded approval for a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner for the Collingwood G&M Hospital, one of 27 licenses across the province.

“We once again salute the hospital leadership at all levels for its diligence and ongoing commitment to the improvement of patient care where we live and work,” says CGMH Foundation President & CEO Jory Pritchard-Kerr, “I can say confidently that there will be overwhelming support from the community to get behind this CGMH priority.”

MRI service will help CGMH to advance safety, quality of care, and efficiency while improving access to care closer to home. This will be a tremendous benefit to inpatients and ED patients as well as those with significant cancer, stroke, orthopaedic, and emergency medical conditions. A significant portion of the hospital’s outpatients will experience far shorter wait times and will effectively end the requirement to travel for essential imaging care.

About the Collingwood Hospital Foundation
The Collingwood G&M Hospital Foundation inspires the communities of South Georgian Bay to invest in the facilities, equipment, programs and services for the Collingwood General & Marine Hospital. With 90% of all the Equipment and Technology at the G&M Hospital funded by community support, the Foundation successfully carries out many large fundraising initiatives to fund the hospital’s most critical needs. Learn more about the Foundation at collingwoodhospital.com.