General News
2 June, 2022
Donation supports hospital services
THE generosity of a donor wanting to give back to the Camperdown community has paid for two expensive pieces of medical equipment for the Camperdown Hospital.
THE generosity of a donor wanting to give back to the Camperdown community has paid for two expensive pieces of medical equipment for the Camperdown Hospital.
The first piece of equipment has just arrived and the theatre team could not be happier.
Worth $39,000, an argon plasma diathermy unit – used to help rule out cancer – is usually only owned by much larger hospitals.
Most weeks, at least 20 patients undergo a colonoscopy or gastroscopy at the Camperdown Hospital.
Close to 40 per cent of these investigative procedures identify polyps (abnormal collections of tissue) which are safely removed at the time in what is a relatively non-invasive procedure – providing
these polyps are not large or complicated.
However, the safe removal of complicated and/or larger polyps requires an argon plasma diathermy unit to control potential blood loss during surgery.
Until now, patients in this situation have had to be referred to a hospital with an argon plasma diathermy unit, such as the Warrnambool Base.
For a patient, this means a second trip to hospital, a second anaesthetic, and a second period of recovery.
Camperdown nurse unit manager Nikki Delaney has dreamed for years of Camperdown’s theatre owning an argon plasma diathermy unit.
“This is a game changer to the treatments we will now be able to provide,” she said.
The anyonymous donor pledged $70,000 to support the Camperdown hospital.
The remaining $31,000 has allowed the hospital to purchase a panda warmer for the Camperdown midwifery suite.
Now on order, this piece of medical equipment has special heating properties which keep unclothed and unwrapped newborns toasty-warm while the paediatric team does health checks.