Canadian Pacific Makes an ‘Enormous Difference’ for Canmore’s Heart Health

At the Canmore Hospital Foundation, we understand and are driven by the importance of giving our hospital and health care workers everything they need to provide the best possible care for our community. When companies, organizations, and individuals who share those values come along, our potential for change increases enormously. The Foundation has been fortunate enough to receive donations from Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKS). We are delighted to announce another substantial donation from CPKS to our community’s health care. 

CPKS, through the CPKS Has Heart community investment program, has helped fund the purchase of a Cardiac Monitor for the ER at the cost of $11,200. This follows a generous contribution to purchase an Electrocardiograph (ECG) machine and Holter monitor at the total cost of $20,000. CPKS has helped raise over $29 million to improve the heart health of adults and children of North America.

We understand that these numbers and medical terms may not resonate on their own, so we spoke to Dr. Mike Wickham, Emergency Physician Lead at Canmore General Hospital, to gain an understanding of the true impact of this donation. 

“It makes an enormous difference,” Dr. Wickham said of CPKS’s donation. “Any major piece of equipment that enhances our team’s capacity to look after patients and provide them with the best possible care that we can is just an asset to the hospital, the patients, and the community at large. These pieces of equipment are essential for monitoring patients that have entered into the hospital system with concerns of potential heart problems.”

Dr. Wickham first spoke of the ECG machine. He told us that this piece of medical equipment offers an “incredible amount of information as to whether the patient is at risk, or is actually having an unstable heart rhythm. And, or a possible heart attack.” He also spoke about the power of the cardiac monitor. 

“The heart monitor is really a shadow of the nurse. So it accompanies the nurse into the room and is hooked up to the patients,” Dr. Wickham told us. 

“In a nutshell, all of these pieces of equipment that CPKS has graciously donated the funds for just act as an essential adjunct to our nurses and physicians for recognizing early cardiac irregularities so that we can catch them early and treat them appropriately. This equipment detects any potential subtle electrical changes in the heart, that may very well be predictive of a dangerous situation down the road. This helps us prevent major heart attacks or major cardiac abnormalities.”

So, donations like this actively support both patients and staff at the Canmore General Hospital. 

Dr. Wickham explained that being able to purchase high-quality medical equipment brings the Canmore General Hospital above the standard level of care “because of the quality of the item that those donations can actually allow us to purchase.” The Foundation and our donors allow the Canmore General Hospital to get the necessary equipment in a timely manner and at the best possible quality. 

Thank you, endlessly, to CPKS for their support and their impact on the health of our community.