MHP Foundation Helps Purchase Bili Light for OB
Shown in the Mahaska Health Birthing Center with the new phototherapy system used to treat babies with jaundice are, from left: Foundation Board President Sandy Baily, Nurse Sara Lenox, Foundation Secretary Andy Holmberg, Nurse Amanda Ridgeway, Foundation Director Cathy Stahl, Foundation Board members Shirley Vore, Vicky Collette, Guy Vander Linden and Dede Horn, Mahaska Health CEO Kevin DeRonde, and Foundation Treasurer Josh Buckingham.
MAHASKA COUNTY – With money donated to the Mahaska Health Foundation and donor-directed to benefit the Birthing Center, a phototherapy system was recently purchased. According to MHP Chief Nursing Officer Andrea Hagist, the advanced LED technology system is used to treat babies with jaundice.
“Thanks to the community’s generous support of the Mahaska Health Foundation, the Birthing Center was able to purchase a Giraffe Blue Spot PT Lite Phototherapy System,” Hagist said. “This system was made by GE Healthcare and designed with both the newborn and caregivers in mind. It provides high-intensity output and is compact, lightweight and user-friendly.”
Hagist explained that a bili light is a light therapy tool used to treat newborn jaundice or hyperbilirubinemia. High levels of bilirubin in the blood can cause serious harm to babies. The therapy uses a blue light that converts bilirubin into a form that can be excreted from the body.
According to Hagist, the system is able to deliver focused light therapy directly to the baby while minimizing undesired exposure for caregivers. It also has a fiberoptic light pipe and a gooseneck design that is easy to position to deliver therapeutic light exactly where it is needed.
Mahaska Health Foundation Director Cathy Stahl said that the Foundation is the fundraising arm of Mahaska Health. “We are a volunteer board of community leaders who promote gifting to support the financial needs of Mahaska Health,” Stahl said. “We do this in a variety of ways, including cultivating and securing private and corporate gifts and grants, major and planned gift development and through special events.”
Stahl said the Foundation supports many areas of the hospital, and that donors can also specify what areas of the health system they want their donations applied. “We get many memorial donations where the family has indicated that funds should benefit Hospice and the Hospice Serenity House. As a Foundation, it is vital that we honor our donors’ intent.
“We also have people who want the Foundation to direct funds where there is a greatest need,” Stahl continued. “We know that there is no such thing as a small gift; there are only gifts that are greatly appreciated and will be used to fulfill our healthcare mission to enhance the quality of life for our friends, neighbors and the communities we serve.”
For more information regarding ways you can support the Mahaska Health Foundation, visit mahaskahealth.org, or check out the Mahaska Health Foundation Facebook page. Stahl can also be reached at 641.676.7146.
