CT Scanner arrives in Nelson today after three-year wait
By Nelson Daily Staff
The day has finally arrived.
The city will receive its long-awaited CT scanner at Kootenay Lake Hospital today after years of fundraising and lobbying.
Bryna Idler, administrator for the Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation, said during the past years of fundraising for the Foundation this has been its most high profile project — a campaign that lasted 16 months.
She said Nelsonites will have to wait until November until the scanner is ready to use, after the room that houses it is complete and the scanner is set up.
With the $1.5 million target for the diagnostic tool reached one year ago, goals were initially set to fundraise approximately one third of donations from small donours, one third from more substantial local donations and one third from a few major contributors.
In the first month of the campaign some Foundation directors met with the RDCK board to shore up regional support (which they received), while others began to talk about constructing Foundation House.
A further group worked on the small donations by promoting ideas to the business community, starting the $1,000 from 1,000 ad campaign for community groups, and sending out 17,000 brochures.
In the end, donations ranged from $10 to $100,000 and came from every corner of the region and from over 50 community organizations.
Since the CT scanner lobbying began, the Foundation has bought equipment for a new mammography unit, the new maternity ward, and two state-of-the art operating rooms.
The current $15.3 million project for the emergency room upgrade will triple the size of the current department to 9,946 sq. ft to help the hospital handle expected growth in the north Kootenay Lake area.
See also
Goal finally hit for CT Scanner fundraising campaign
