News
Helmsley Charitable Trust Grants Funds for Life-Saving Technology to Confront Cardiac Threat from COVID-19 in Mobridge and Surrounding Communities
Posted 4/21/20 (Tue)
Helmsley Charitable Trust Grants Funds for Life-Saving Technology to Confront Cardiac Threat from COVID-19 in Mobridge and Surrounding Communities
Mobridge, SD (April 20, 2020) – The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust announced today a multimillion-dollar effort to save the lives of COVID-19 patients and protect the frontline healthcare workers caring for them.
The grant will fund the purchase of one LUCAS mechanical chest compression device for Mobridge Regional Hospital and Clinics.
A total of $4,711,481 in funding will be distributed across five upper-midwestern states to pay for 367 LUCAS mechanical CPR devices to be deployed to hospitals caring for patients during the pandemic and beyond.
“These devices are vital because we don’t want frontline healthcare workers to choose between trying to save a patient or risking exposure to themselves and others to the Coronavirus,” said Walter Panzirer, a trustee for the Helmsley Charitable Trust. “LUCAS has been a proven, effective tool in saving lives during cardiac arrest, and having more of them available during this pandemic will save even more lives, including those of the doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers.”
Research has shown cardiac damage in as many as 1 in 5 COVID-19 patients, leading to heart failure and death even among those who show no signs of respiratory distress. Among patients who recover, many could have long-term effects from such heart damage.
“Everyone at Mobridge Regional Hospital and Clinics is so grateful for this generous donation from the Helmsley Charitable Trust. This isn’t the first grant/donation we have received from them and their thoughtful and strategic investments allow us to provide the highest quality care for our patients and community.” said John J. Ayoub, CEO of Mobridge Regional Hospital and Clinics. “This gift is so timely and needed as we prepare for the coming surge of COVID-19 patients. Our staff will also be able to utilize it for life-saving care after the surge in our ER as well as our paramedic first responders in the field.”
The rise in cardiac complications caused by COVID-19 exposes both patients and healthcare workers to greater risk, as hands-on CPR can be needed for extended periods and personal protective equipment can become less effective in keeping the virus from spreading to medical providers.
Mechanical CPR has been adopted by emergency medical responders and many hospitals around the globe, initially due to its ability to deliver extended CPR in compliance with American Heart Association guidelines. Multiple studies have demonstrated equivalence to high-performance CPR, as well as increased provider safety and higher rates of adequate compressions for patients in transport situations. Recently, the Department of Defense COVID-19 Practice Management Guide identified the LUCAS chest compression system as the best practice for managing patients in cardiac arrest to reduce the risk of exposure to care providers.
The Helmsley Charitable Trust is partnering with medical facilities in South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and Nebraska to ensure the devices are in place before the peak of COVID-19 hits. The devices will remain in place after the pandemic as part of the hospitals’ cardiac system of care.
“We were able to go from concept to delivery of the devices in two weeks, and that’s been an incredible effort of teamwork with the manufacturer and the hospitals to get them in place ahead of the peak needs,” said Panzirer. “It’s wonderful to see competing entities working together during a national crisis for the good of all.”
Mobridge Regional Hospital was established in 1959 by community leaders dedicated to providing the finest possible care to Walworth County and the surrounding region. Today, Mobridge Regional Hospital continues their Vision to “Be One of America’s Finest Rural Health Providers”. As a 25 bed Critical Access Hospital Mobridge Regional Hospital has been able to maintain a wide variety of services including Medical, Surgical, Obstetrical, Intensive Care/Coronary Care, Emergency Room, and Swing Bed services. They also offer a full Laboratory and state of the art Radiology department with services ranging from Digital Mammography, 40 Slice CT, MRI, Ultrasound, Nuclear Medicine, and Full Body Bone Density testing. Mobridge Regional Hospital has a fully equipped Cardiac & Pulmonary Rehabilitation Center and a broad range of inpatient, outpatient and surgical services. Some of these services include sleep studies, Home Health services, Same day surgery, Community Health services, Telemedicine with various community education programs and visiting specialists.
About the LUCAS® Cardiac Care Project
Since 2015, the Helmsley Charitable Trust has given nearly $33 million in grants to help hospitals and first responders in seven upper-midwestern states purchase over 2,400 LUCAS devices, which improve survivability in sudden cardiac arrest victims. The LUCAS® Chest Compression System (LUCAS®) delivers consistent, reliable and uninterrupted chest compressions which allows healthcare providers to concentrate on other equally important aspects of patient care; providing patients with the best opportunity of survival. The LUCAS® device virtually frees up one healthcare worker to perform other essential tasks.
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 more than $2.6 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 $452 million to organizations and initiatives in the upper Midwest states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Minnesota, Iowa, and Montana. For more information, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.
For more information, contact:
Darcy Dykhouse
Executive Assistant
Mobridge Regional Hospital and Clinics
Office: 605-845-8128
Email: dldykhouse@primecare.org
Mitch Krebs, Rural Healthcare Program Director
Helmsley Charitable Trust
Cell: 605-261-2424
Email: mkrebs@helmsleytrust.org