17th Annual 800 CHAB Family First Radiothon
The 17th annual 800 CHAB Family First Radiothon that took place for the past 36 hours has exceeded its goal. Raising money for the Moose Jaw Health Foundation, the goal heading into the radiothon was to raise $150,000. At the end of it all, the radiothon raised a total of $592,533!
Starting off the Radiothon was good news as Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railroad announced that it would make the first $20,000 raised. Just before the noon total on Thursday, the RBC Foundation announced a $10,000 donation to go toward nursing programs. Just before 6 p.m., the Royal Canadian Legion give a $5,000 donation.
Heading into Day 2 on Friday, a private donor said they would match $50,000 raised during the second day. Shortly before 11 a.m., Gibson Energy presented a cheque for $15,000. And then the big donation. Leroy from Leroy and Leroy stopped by to announce that the Moose Jaw Health Foundation's Healthcare Rocks raised $40,000, pushing the total passed its goal.
The funds will be used for the health foundation to purchase equipment including a specialized critical care bed, a glidescope, an ultrasound probe and a QuickThaw Plasma System for the Dr. F.H. Wigmore Regional Hospital. Long-time local surgeon Dr. George Miller credited the community for the success of the Radiothon over the years. “The numbers are actually quite staggering when you see what the size of our community has been able to raise over the years. I think it's a credit to Kelly and the hospital foundation that they've been able to do this work. I think it's really credit to the community that's been so generous with their support,” Miller said.
Local physician Dr. Caitlyne Howe stopped by during the Radiothon. She explained how this new equipment will impact the lives of Moose Javians. “To be able to provide that elevated level of care to people really does change their outcomes and it allows them to stay close to home without having to be transferred every time they might need that little extra bit of support,” Howe said.
Emergency and ICU nurse Jana Kitts said having state-of-the-art equipment at the Dr. F.H. Wigmore Regional Hospital will save lives. “All our treatments are time based. We have to do certain treatments within 15 minutes of arrival. We have to do certain tests within an hour of arrival. So, the more equipment that we have readily available cuts down our time immensely,” Kitts said.
In 17 years, the Family First Radiothon has raised $5,401,917 for the Moose Jaw Health Foundation. Please support the Radiothon with your participation. You can make a difference in the lives of critically ill patients. If you would like to contribute to the Radiothon, please click here.