Helmsley Charitable Trust adds Nevada to Rural Healthcare Program, grants more than $11.3M to hospitals for advanced equipment
LAS VEGAS — The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has added Nevada as the eighth state in its Rural Healthcare Program, announcing more than $11.3 million in grants to help 10 Nevada hospitals purchase state-of-the-art diagnostic and radiology equipment and expand simulation-based training.
The funding announced Tuesday at events hosted by Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson and Renown Health in Reno, marks the Helmsley Charitable Trust’s latest rural healthcare grants, which over the past decade have provided more than $500 million to efforts 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.
Walter Panzirer, a trustee for the Helmsley Charitable Trust, said a detailed analysis of states’ rural healthcare needs identified Nevada as a great fit for Helmsley’s Rural Healthcare Program, and this funding along with future investments hold the potential to revolutionize how healthcare is delivered across Nevada’s rural and urban hospitals.
“Your zip code shouldn’t determine your healthcare outcomes,” Panzirer said. “These grants will help level the playing field for Nevada’s rural hospitals by giving patients access to the same state-of-the-art equipment found in urban centers.”
The $11.3 million in funding stems from a recent survey of Nevada’s Critical Access Hospitals, which identified x-ray equipment, ultrasound machines, CT scanners and simulation-based learning as top needs to provide patients with access to up‐to‐date healthcare technology.
The new fixed x-ray machines, portable x-ray machines, c-arms, fixed fluoroscopy systems and computer tomography (CT) scanners purchased through these grants produce higher quality images, allowing medical staff to better assess health status and determine the proper course of treatment. The grants also support the hospitals’ sustainability, as newer equipment drives higher usage and supports higher reimbursement rates.
The grants include:
- $736,000 to Boulder City Hospital for 3D mammography and mobile C-arm fluoroscopic x-ray equipment
- $667,000 to Grover C. Dils Medical Center in Caliente for a fixed x-ray device and a CT scanner
- $402,000 to Pershing General Hospital in Lovelock to purchase a CT scanner
- $959,000 to William Bee Ririe Hospital in Ely for a CT scanner and fixed x-ray device with fluoroscopy
- $1.8 million to Incline Village Community Hospital for a CT scanner, fixed x-ray device and related costs
- $3.6 million to Carson Valley Medical Center in Gardnerville to build and equip a hybrid cardiac cath lab/interventional radiology lab and purchase a new fixed x-ray device
- $518,000 to South Lyon Medical Center in Yerington for a CT scanner and a fixed x-ray device
- $462,000 to Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson for a state-of-the-art medical simulation center, featuring six high-fidelity patient simulators, beds and equipment
- $2.2 million to the Nevada Community Foundation to fund a fixed x-ray device with fluoroscopy for Desert View Hospital in Pahrump and 3D mammography equipment, a CT scanner, a fixed x-ray device and a portable x-ray machine for Mesa View Regional Hospital in Mesquite
Panzirer, who resides in Nevada and regularly travels across the state, said the Helmsley Charitable Trust looks forward to replicating some of its most successful programs from other states in Nevada while also looking for innovative ideas from its healthcare partners.
“While replicating our successful programs from other areas is a top priority now, we look forward to learning more about the specific needs of our partners and developing first-time projects here in Nevada,” Panzirer said.