Langdon, North Dakota— The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has granted
$408,100.00 to Langdon Prairie Health to purchase ultrasound machines as part of a $27.4 million ultrasound initiative in North Dakota.
The initiative includes more than $21.8 million to help 69 North Dakota hospitals and health centers purchase ultrasound imaging devices and nearly $5.7 million to boost sonography and point of care ultrasound (POCUS) training opportunities across the state.
“We are incredibly grateful to the Helmsley Charitable Trust for this generous investment in rural healthcare. This grant allows Langdon Prairie Health to enhance our ultrasound capabilities, improving both diagnostic accuracy and patient care. Access to cutting-edge imaging technology is vital for rural communities, ensuring that patients receive high-quality care close to home. This initiative will have a lasting impact on healthcare across North Dakota, and we are honored to be a part of it.” -Wayne Reid, CEO of Langdon Prairie Health
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. Pat Bredeson, the Radiology Director at Langdon Prairie Health states, “Our goal is to provide our patients with the latest technology so we can continue to offer exceptional healthcare locally. We are grateful to the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust for this opportunity to help support our mission. These grants are game changers for rural hospitals across the state. Our providers will have access to the newest Ultrasound equipment on the market and be able to incorporate these skills into their clinical practices.”
“We are truly privileged to have received this grant. Having ultrasound capabilities in the clinic and hospital will not only help with prompt diagnosis and treatment, but it is a safer diagnostic option, that limits the radiation exposure risk. It is a tool that is vastly underutilized in the hospital setting, so we are looking forward in incorporating this within our practice.”- Samuel Emeka Okwudili, MD
Walter Panzirer, a Trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust, said the grants will help improve access to top-notch medical treatment for North Dakotans, whether they live in Fargo, Bismarck, or Grand Forks, or a smaller rural community such as Bottineau, Rugby, or Hettinger.
“These grants will help ensure that hospitals and health centers across North Dakota have the latest in state-of-the-art ultrasound equipment and training,” Panzirer said. “Facilities need to stay current with rapidly advancing technology so they can continue to provide the very best healthcare close to home.”
The majority (134) of the devices purchased through the 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 57 general ultrasound systems and 24 cardiovascular ultrasound systems, which aid in imaging of the heart.
The initiative also includes nearly $1.9 million to North Dakota State University and nearly $3.8 million to High Quality Medical Education (HQMEDED) to expand sonographer expertise and provide comprehensive POCUS training to doctors, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. Additionally, more than $64,000 will go to individual facilities to boost sonographer training.
The Helmsley Charitable Trust has committed a total of $72 million to fund ultrasound equipment and training initiatives for rural communities and underserved populations in Nevada, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wyoming.
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 $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 $750 million to organizations and initiatives in the states of Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and two U.S. Pacific territories, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. For more information, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.
