CASPER (March 21, 2024) – The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has granted $1,869,863 to the Banner Health Foundation to support acquisition of 29 pieces of ultrasound equipment, ranging from bladder scanners to handheld ultrasound devices, for use across six Banner Health medical centers and clinics in Wyoming. The funding is part of a total $13.9 million in grant awards from the Helmsley Charitable Trust to help Wyoming hospitals and health centers purchase ultrasound imaging devices and boost sonography and point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) training opportunities across the state.
Ultrasound uses high-frequency sound waves to produce images of structures inside the body. This safe, cost-effective tool supports other clinical information to help providers make timely diagnoses and provide appropriate treatment.
“The new ultrasound equipment generously funded by the Helmsley grant has already significantly enhanced outpatient care services,” says Margo Karsten, western division president for Banner Health. “The state-of-the art technology allows for sharper imaging, facilitating more accurate diagnoses and enabling timely, personalized treatment at the bedside. We are profoundly grateful to the Helmsley Charitable Trust for this generous support.”
Walter Panzirer, a Trustee for the Helmsley Charitable Trust, said the grants will help improve access to quality medical treatment for all Wyoming residents, whether they live in the heart of Cheyenne or Casper or in a smaller rural community. “Our hospitals and health centers need to stay current with rapidly advancing technology so they can continue to provide top-notch healthcare close to home,” Panzirer said. “These grants help ensure that facilities across Wyoming have the latest and greatest ultrasound equipment and training.”
The grants were announced Thursday during a statewide news conference.
About two-thirds of the 143 devices purchased through $12.3 million in equipment grants are POCUS machines, which are used by providers at the bed or tableside for immediate assessment of a patient to quickly determine a course of action. The grants will also provide 26 general ultrasound systems and 20 cardiovascular ultrasound systems, which aid in imaging of the heart. The initiative also includes nearly $1.6 million in funding awarded for the University of Wyoming’s Wyoming Point-of-Care Ultrasound Training Initiative, which aims to enhance patient care across the state by both broadening the scope of training in specialty ultrasound and bolstering access to quality POCUS services.
About the Helmsley Charitable Trust
The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting exceptional efforts in the U.S. and around the world in health and select place-based initiatives. Since beginning active grantmaking in 2008, Helmsley has committed about $4.5 billion for a wide range of charitable purposes. Helmsley’s Rural Healthcare Program funds innovative projects that use information technologies to connect rural patients to emergency medical care, bring the latest medical therapies to patients in remote areas, and provide state-of-the-art training for rural hospitals and EMS personnel. To date, this program has awarded more than $650 million to organizations and initiatives in the states of Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. For more information, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.
About the Banner Health Foundation
Established in 2001, the Banner Health Foundation engages the community and stewards charitable contributions to advance Banner Health’s nonprofit mission of making health care easier so life can be better. Contributions are invested locally to support patient care programs and services operated by Banner’s many hospitals and health care facilities across Arizona and Wyoming. For more information, visit www.bannerhealthfoundation.org.
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