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By ALAN REED areed@paducahsun.com
The Paducah Sun
Feb 20, 2012 | 242 views | 0
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Lourdes Foundation, a nonprofit group, raises money for the hospital to buy new technology, expand services and improve patient areas, among other missions. This breast MRI machine was purchased with foundation funds. The foundation has a fundraiser Tuesday called Mardi Gras and All that Jazz. Proceeds go to the foundation.
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Lourdes Foundation, a non-profit group, raises money for the hospital to buy new technology, expand services and improve patient areas, among other missions. This breast MRI machine helps doctors detect breast cancer beyond mammography was purchased with foundation funds. Margaret Hagan of Paducah credits the machine for detecting her aggressive form of cancer early. She said her thanks go to the foundation for their wonderful work. The foundation has a fundraiser scheduled for Tuesday, called Mardi Gras, and All that Jazz. Proceeds go to the foundation.
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Money raised by the Lourdes Foundation saves lives.
Tara Miller, executive director of the Lourdes Foundation, said her non-profit group collects money from fund raising events, memorial contributions and private or corporate donations. The foundation, working with Lourdes hospital, buys needed pieces of medical equipment and the latest technology for patients. It also provides funds to renovate patient and family waiting areas.
A third part of the foundation’s mission is to provide assistance with medical care for patients who are uninsured or under-insured. The foundation supports Lourdes’ hospice program with about $200,000 a year. It also provides hospice caregivers with laptops and mobile office equipment to communicate on the go.
“We’ve been able to purchase several things for our Women’s Center to provide care,” Miller said. “We bought a $100,000 MRI machine that’s one of the best defenses against breast cancer. We have a 4D ultrasound machine that we use not only so women can see their babies, but we can use it on something suspicious that could be a cancer growing in the body.”
Some other contributions have gone toward finishing Lourdes’ two new hybrid catheter and cardiac surgery suites, the cardiac department and equipment on ambulances that allows paramedics to transmit cardiac data to the hospital before patients arrive.
“It absolutely, no doubt in my mind, saved my life,” Margaret Hagan, a Paducah breast cancer survivor, said. She had a mammogram in 2010, and was called in for a follow-up MRI a week later that detected the cancer. “I had a very aggressive form of cancer. I think if they did not have that machine, I would not be here today.”
Hagan praised the Lourdes Foundation and how donated money leads to projects and equipment that benefit the community.
The foundation’s next fundraiser is Mardi Gras and All that Jazz on Feb. 21 from 6 to 9 p.m at the event center at Harrah’s. Individual tickets are available for $50.
“Through the generosity of our donors, Lourdes can continue to provide advanced technology and an experienced, compassionate health care team to save lives and provide for the special needs of every patient,” said Dr. Lisa Chaney Lasher, medical director of the Lourdes Women’s Center in a letter dated Feb. 8.
For more information or tickets to Mardi Gras and all that Jazz, or to donate, call 270-444-2205.
Contact Alan Reed, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8658.
