A doctor who knows the importance of bringing a CT Scan to Wingham and District Hospital has donated thousands of dollars to help make it happen.
Dr. Sean Henderson, ER Physician Lead, is donating $30,600 to the Caring Together campaign.
“A CT takes lots of thinly sliced x-rays and puts them together with a computer so you can see the body in high definition,” explained Henderson. “Being able to do that means I can make a diagnosis faster and more accurately and that makes a huge difference in giving the right treatment.”
Henderson said it is important to have a CT Scanner in Wingham.
"So as it currently stands, our CT scanner is in Listowel at our sister hospital and they're wonderful and accommodating to us," he explained. "But that means sending somebody in an ambulance down the road with a nurse and using up that ambulance resource and that takes time, of course. So having it down the hallway, there are lots of instances where if you're having a medical emergency, sending somebody right down the hallway can make a huge difference in getting that answer in minutes rather than hours."
He pointed out a CT Scanner is also a valuable asset when it comes to attracting potential new healthcare professionals to Wingham.
"So one of the things is when you're new to practice making that transition is, is daunting. We're very well trained, but there's no question that when you first start doing this job, there's a lot of variables where you're trying to gain comfort," added Henderson. "And so familiarity helps comfort and when we train with a CT scanner just down the hall, when you're looking at a place to practice, if you see that that's there, that definitely adds to the desirability of that place for practice."
Henderson began practicing at the Wingham and District Hospital, along with his family practice in Lucknow, in 2018.
His donation brings the campaign to about $1.6 million, with the target set at $2.5 million. Henderson encouraged others to support the Caring Together campaign by visiting www.wdhfoundation.ca/ct-campaign.