Columbus Community Hospital receiving funding for CPR Devices

News release:

(COLUMBUS, Neb.) – Columbus Community Hospital recently received grant money from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to purchase LUCAS mechanical chest compression devices.

The LUCAS® Chest Compression System delivers consistent, reliable and uninterrupted chest compressions. Mechanical CPR devices like LUCAS has been adopted by emergency medical responders and many hospitals around the world. They have been shown to improve the quality of chest compressions and can help sustain circulation during prolonged resuscitation attempts.

The money CCH received for LUCAS devices is part of a $4.7 million grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust. As part of the grant, a total of $4,711,481 in funding will be distributed across South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Nebraska medical facilities to pay for 367 LUCAS mechanical CPR devices.

The medical facilities will receive the devices before the peak of COVID-19 hits and the devices will remain in place after the pandemic as part of the hospitals’ cardiac system of care. The hope is that these devices will save the lives of COVID-19 patients and protect the frontline health care workers caring for them.

Cardiac complications caused by COVID-19 can expose both patients and health care workers to greater risk, as hands-on CPR can be needed for extended periods and personal protective equipment can become less effective in keeping the virus from spreading to medical providers.

Recently, the Department of Defense COVID-19 Practice Management Guide identified the LUCAS chest compression system as the best practice for managing patients in cardiac arrest to reduce health care providers’ risk of exposure to COVID-19.

“We’re thankful to The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust for their funding for LUCAS devices. These are challenging times for all of us and we’re grateful for their support which will help us better protect our patients and our staff,” said Michael Hansen, CCH president and CEO.

Since 2015, the Helmsley Charitable Trust has given nearly $33 million in grants to help hospitals and first responders in seven upper-midwestern states purchase over 2,400 LUCAS devices.

For more information on the trust, visit www.helmsleytrust.org. For more information on how CCH is confronting the COVID-19 crisis, visit www.columbushosp.org.