The District of Kitimat has committed $800,000, provided over the course of two years, towards the purchase of a computed tomography (“CT”) scanner for the Kitimat General Hospital.
A CT Scanner has been a long-time fundraising effort of the Kitimat General Hospital Foundation, and the District’s contribution nudges the project passed the finish line, following a number of other major donations and community support the project has received through the fundraising phase, as well as Northern Health’s own capital investment to the project.
“Our Council has been committed to improving the health of our residents through its support of programs to improve local delivery of services,” says Kitimat Mayor Phil Germuth. “This CT Scanner means we can more quickly address and identify health concerns for Kitimat residents right here without requiring transport to other hospitals and towns.”
The scanner does more than diagnose patients here at home. A report looking into how to better recruit and retain healthcare workers in Kitimat pointed to the absence of equipment like a CT Scanner as an impediment for healthcare professionals moving to Kitimat.
“A CT Scanner was specifically identified as a missing piece of equipment that would not only improve health outcomes but would reduce the stress on our professionals needing to treat patients without tools like this,” added Germuth.