Thanks to interest generated by the Manistee Hospital Endowment Fund, the hospital will be able to purchase several pieces of equipment to enhance patient care. The Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital Board of Directors approved the purchase of the items at a recent meeting.
“Each year or so, depending on fund performance, the Foundation makes the accumulated interest available to the hospital to use for equipment or projects,” said Courtney Mulder, Charitable Giving Officer for Munson Healthcare’s South Region. “The fund principal will not be touched, ensuring it will live on to provide this income to benefit health care in our community.”
This year, $45,000 in interest was available. After reviewing a list of items needed by the hospital, the Board of Directors of the Manistee Hospital Foundation chose to fund surgical, bedside, and laboratory equipment.
“This gift from the Foundation will directly benefit our patients,” said Kelly Tomaszewski, Chief Nursing Officer at Manistee Hospital. “We are grateful to the many donors who support the endowment fund.”
The Foundation Board approved the purchase of:
- An insufflator for laparoscopic surgery
- Blood pressure machines
- Temporal thermometers
- Laboratory analyzer
- Laboratory specimen refrigerator
“The insufflator inflates the patient’s abdomen, helping ensure the surgeon has sufficient room in the belly to maneuver the laparoscopes,” explained Tomaszewski. “Laparoscopic surgery has many benefits over traditional surgery, including smaller incisions and a generally shorter recovery time.” The device will be used primarily for Manistee’s gynecological and general surgery patients.
“Temporal thermometers allow staff to quickly and accurately capture a temperature from the side of the head when a patient is unable to hold a thermometer under the tongue,” said Tomaszewski.
The Manistee Hospital Endowment Fund was launched in 2015 to provide an ongoing means of financial support for the hospital. The endowment was created with over $1 million in principal, $600,000 of which came from an anonymous matching donor.