Grant allows hospital to expand services

Residents will be able to have more health services done locally thanks to a grant received by the Boulder City Hospital for new mammography equipment.

Earlier this month, the hospital received $736,000 from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to pay for 3D mammography and mobile X-ray equipment.

Tom Maher, chief executive officer for the hospital, said this is a “game changer” for the nonprofit medical facility and an “absolute win” for the community.

“Receiving the latest technology and equipment aligns us with larger imaging centers in the Las Vegas Valley,” he said. “With the opening of our rural health clinic, Boulder City Primary Care, in 2019 we have been focused on expansion of services. As part of our community needs assessment, we found that our community is committed to annual wellness screening, and mammography was identified as an area of need/want. … The Helmsley Charitable Trust Grant allows us the opportunity to service our community locally (by) offering quality care close to home with quick appointments using the latest technology.”

Maher said the plan is to have the mammography service and equipment up and running within the first quarter of 2022.

“We will offer screening and diagnostic mammography with strategic plans to expand preventative health and screening services in the future,” Maher added.

Maher said the hospital will also be able to upgrade its “C-Arm in surgery,” and it will allow them to offer the “latest equipment for fluoroscopic imaging during outpatient surgical and orthopedic procedures.”

The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust’s $736,000 grant to Boulder City Hospital was part of a $11.3 million it gave to rural hospitals in Nevada. According to its website, the trust is committed to helping people live better lives today and creating stronger, healthier futures for individuals and communities all over the world.

“Your ZIP code shouldn’t determine your health care outcomes,” said Walter Panzirer, a trustee for the Helmsley Charitable Trust, in a press release. “These grants will help level the playing field for Nevada’s rural hospitals by giving patients access to the same state-of-the-art equipment found in urban centers.”

“We are excited the trust has chosen to invest in Nevada,” said Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak in a press release. “As governor, I am focused on improving access for all Nevadans and this will go a long way for all those who call Nevada home.”

Boulder City Hospital has been operating and serving the community since 1954.

Contact reporter Celia Shortt Goodyear at cgoodyear@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow her on Twitter @csgoodyear.