The group that runs Leduc's wildly popular annual rodeo, tradeshow and fair, The Black Gold Professional Rodeo Association, has donated $5000 toward the new CT (computed tomography) scanner at the Leduc Community Hospital. Hospital officials have said the "CAT" scanner, as it is better known by, is expected to be used to help over 2500 Leduc-area inhabitants annually.

The CAT scanner provides fast, accurate 3D imaging of soft tissues, such as internal organs, which are not easily visible with regular x-ray imaging technology. After the Leduc Hospital had identified the need for the $1.25 million scanner in their ongoing needs assessments, the Black Gold Health Foundation kicked off the fundraising project in April of 2015. 

Long-time Black Gold Rodeo supporters Tina and Lorne who own L & T Mix Sand and Gravel Ltd also dug deep to help out the health foundation's project. The generous Leduc County residents had donated $100,000 to the scanner project in February of this year. Their gift was featured in the April edition of Alberta Health Care Edmonton Zone News publication.

"Tina has to have a CT scan every three months - and I was ready to just buy one to avoid those trips to Edmonton," Mr. Mix said in the AHS article. "Making the donation to the foundation was a lot easier than buying one ourselves. Now we don't have to operate it!"

Although the fundraising project has been estimated to require 5 years to get the necessary financing, the hospital has already received the equipment and has been performing life-saving diagnostics with it since February. Alberta Health Services has agreed to pay for the staffing and other operational costs.

"We were transporting over 600 patients requiring CT scans each year to Edmonton from this facility, and EMS diverted patients with spinal or head injuries in the Leduc County area to an alternative facility that provides CT scanner services," says Dr. Bob Simard, Facility Medical Director at the hospital, in a February news release. "Having access to a CT scanner in our own building means we can enhance care by providing faster and more accurate diagnostic services to our patients."

"Being able to bring services such as CT scans close to home at Leduc Community Hospital is not only vital to the citizens of our region, but also to the ever-growing demands as the "first port of call? for emergency services in the area," said Black Gold Health FoundationExecutive Director, Lorraine Popik, in the release. "We are reaching out to our community, the ones who will use these services, for financial support. This is a great opportunity to give back to your community."

The Black Gold Professional Rodeo Association couldn't agree more.