ENDOWMENT

Sibley is one of only 200 hospitals around the world to offer TomoTherapy treatment. Patients have come to expect this kind of sophisticated medical care at Sibley, and rightly so.

We were among the first hospitals in the region to offer a 64-slice CT scanner, producing faster, higher-resolution images, and the first to acquire PET/CT—the gold standard for medical, surgical, and radiation oncology.

Sibley has also invested in a da Vinci robot, a specialized surgical instrument that offers unmatched precision for complex and delicate procedures.

Such cutting-edge equipment is, of course, expensive. Beyond the cost of acquiring the equipment are ongoing costs: keeping current with the necessary software, investing in upgrades, and providing continuing training for physicians and technologists. Most of this equipment requires special instruments and scopes; these items are consumable—they are used one to three times and then must be replaced.

Technological innovations also promise greatly enhanced patient safety. Electronic medication administration, for example, links individual patients to their prescribed medications using unique barcodes, ensuring that every patient gets the right medications in the proper dosage each time.

Technologies such as these require a significant financial commitment and a desire to provide the most advanced care possible. Reimbursement from medical insurance simply does not cover the costs. To continue to offer the safest, most advanced care possible, we must create endowments specifically for technology. Such endowments will help provide patients with the most sophisticated equipment for treatment and patient safety available, both today and into the future.