Stowe Rotary donates $2,500 to Copley Hospital for purchase of telemetry equipment

The Stowe Rotary has donated $2,500 to Copley Hospital toward the purchase of telemetry equipment. Telemetry is used to monitor and record a variety of patient parameters, such as an EKG, from a remote location. This means that the patient’s vital signs may be monitored less intrusively 24 hours a day both at the bedside and at Copley’s Nurses Station. As changes or notable fluctuations occur, nurses are immediately notified. The data is also easily incorporated into an Electronic Health Record and is useful to establish baselines and track progress over time.
‘We are grateful to the Stowe Rotary for their assistance in purchasing additional telemetry units,’ says Patashnick. ‘Telemetry provides a great benefit to patients with the improved care and safety provided by 24 hour electronic monitoring in addition to traditional ‘hands on’ nursing. The Stowe Rotary again demonstrates that they share Copley’s commitment to improving the health of our community.’
The Stowe Rotary’s donation was made to Copley Hospital’s Annual Fund. The service organization has donated nearly $18,000 to Copley’s Annual Fund in the past eight years.
Proceeds from this year’s Annual Fund will be used toward charitable care for patients unable to otherwise afford the health care they need and toward purchasing needed medical equipment, including the telemetry units. According to Patashnick, the hospital would like to purchase several patient-lifting devices and patient transfer and repositioning devices for use in the Emergency Department, Medical/Surgical Patient Rooms and Radiology. These devices provide more comfort and safety for patients and also reduce lifting-related injuries among staff. ‘Last year, Copley provided $800,000 in charitable care,’ says Patashnick. ‘The patient lifting and transfer equipment costs nearly $33,000 and is needed to ensure the safety of both our patients and our staff.’
Stowe Rotarians Art Lloyd (left) and Michael Diender (third from left) presented the donation to Midge Anthony, RN and Copley Hospital President Mel Patashnick. Just prior to the presentation, Anthony demonstrated how telemetry works, connecting Diender to a unit, which he is shown holding.