HMH Board of Trustees Approves Additional 3-D Mammography Purchase

The HMH Board of Trustees today approved a $400,000 purchase of additional 3-D mammography equipment

Elizabethtown, Ky. – The HMH Board of Trustees today approved a $400,000 purchase of additional 3-D mammography equipment for HMH to provide Central Kentuckians even greater access to the cutting edge technology. 

The new equipment comes on the heels of a $1.5 million investment earlier this year that added 3-D technology at the hospital main campus and HMH’s Elizabethtown Diagnostics and Imaging as well as a new needle biopsy table.

The funding authorization will add an additional 3-D unit at the hospital main campus. 

HMH Radiologist and Radiology Chair Jesse Bryant, M.D. said the demand for 3-D mammography is tremendous. 

“Patients want access to the latest technology and we can offer it,” Bryant said. 

Bryant noted that 3-D mammography helps detect cancer at a higher rate and at a smaller size.

“That means we can treat cancer much earlier,” said Bryant. “Early detection is critical in the fight against cancer.”  

Bryant said the technology allows the radiologist to see the breast tissue like pages in a book so very little is hidden by overlapping tissue. 

Bryant thanked the Board and recognized fellow radiologist Sarah Callahan, M.D. for championing this investment. Callahan is a member of HMH’s Multidisciplinary Breast Team of physicians, nurses and clinical staff who take a comprehensive, integrated approach to each breast cancer patient’s care and treatment plan. 

Callahan praised HMH’s commitment to having the most advanced tools to diagnose and treat patients. In addition to early detection and treatment, she said, 3-D mammography also reduces the recall rate. 

“I see the stress patients go through when they come back for a diagnostic mammogram,” said Callahan. “The fewer people who have to experience that, the better.”

The Board of Trustees also approved a $1.5 million purchase of diagnostic imaging equipment for HMH’s new medical facility in Bardstown. Currently under construction, the 70,000 square-foot facility will be home to HMH’s growing Bardstown Family Medical Center as well as to multiple specialists.

The state of the art building will also house laboratory, diagnostic imaging, cardiovascular, rehab and disease management services.

In other Board news. 

• Financials. The Board also approved financial reports for September and October. Through October, HMH has an operating income of $3.3 million compared to a projected loss of $39,000. HMH Chief Financial Officer Lennis Thompson pointed to higher than projected outpatient volumes as a major factor in HMH’s positive financial performance.
• Ambassadors. Megan Burgin and Amy Meredith were named HMH Ambassadors of the Month for September. Ramona Sweany was named the October HMH Ambassador of the Month. Melanie Whitlock and Kate Lucas were named November HMH Ambassadors of the Month. Patients and co-workers recognized all of them for their caring nature and dedicated support. 
• Daisy Award. HMH’s Shirley Kinser was recently recognized with the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. A member of the HMH palliative care team, Kinser is dedicated to helping patients facing serious illnesses live out their life as fully as they can. November is National Palliative Care Month.