The popular monthly 50/50 lotto draw held in Sudbury each month has resulted in millions of dollars being spent on new medical equipment and patient care capital projects at Health Sciences North (HSN).
Details outlined in a newly released 2021-2022 report said more than $6 million dollars has been invested back into supporting patient care and $9 million committed for future capital projects at HSN.
HSN foundations said the monthly lottery funding helped in the following ways.
-The purchase of a new MRI digital imaging machine and upgrading the existing MRI to improve patient outcomes, especially for those living with cancer, heart disease, Multiple Sclerosis and for the youngest of pediatric patients.
-Providing essential funding to world-class scientists and research aimed at saving lives through clinical cancer trials, developing innovative therapies and genetic code research.
-Played a role in the opening of the new state-of-the-art Labelle Innovation and Learning Centre where future doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals can upgrade and learn about new procedures and patient care.
-Helped to ease the financial burden tied to cancer diagnosis. Also purchased special medical equipment such as pediatric ventilators and defibrillators to improve patient care in Sudbury and for patients from across Northern Ontario.
The funding report said adding a new MRI and upgrading the existing MRI had one of the most significant impacts on patient care at HSN
"The two operational MRIs are already making a difference to patients of all ages and disease types – creating more capacity to help reduce wait times, providing better imaging capabilities for more accurate diagnosis and treatment," said the report.
It said the two MRIs, as of March 28, are now able to provide more than 200 hours of new scan time per month, which translates into 322 new appointments per month.
The foundations said funding is being directed toward the HSN Foundation for direct funding of hospital projects; to the NEO Kids Foundation for the purchase of pediatric equipment and support funding for more than 1,000 NEO Kids hospital stays each year; to the Northern Cancer Foundation to support the work of research to improve cancer patient outcomes as well as renovations for specialized treatment rooms; and to the HSN Volunteer Association which purchased new defibrillators to help save lives in emergency cardiac situations. Volunteer Association funds have also been directed to the Health Sciences North Research Institute for work in cancer solutions, emergency medicine, cardiovascular health and healthy aging.
The funding report also provided a breakdown of the expenses and prizes paid out from April 1 2021 through to March 31, 2022. The 50/50 cash lottery sold $15,363,305 in tickets.
This resulted in total prizes of $7.9 million, said the report. The report said the total direct cost for the 50/50 cash lottery was $1.8 million. The report said the net revenue supporting patient care was $5.6 million.
Len Gillis covers health care and mining for Sudbury.com.
