Adam Prudhomme
Editor
The Lennox and Addington County General Hospital Foundation is calling on cyclists to go the extra 30 km during their Ride for MRI fundraiser on May 26.
Proceeds from the first time event will go towards funding the hospital’s new Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine.
Participants can ride solo, with their family, or as part of a team, and take part in a 30 km scenic ride through the town of Greater Napanee and Stone Mills township.
A 4 km family route will take participants through the picturesque scenery of downtown Greater Napanee. This route is open to all levels of riders. Registration for the ride is $35 per person and is now open and can be so online by visiting https://lacghfoundation.com/rideformri/. The ride will depart from the Westdale Auditorium, across the street from the hospital, and will loop through Newburgh, returning back to the starting point. A map of the route is available on the registration website.
LACGH Foundation has set fundraising goal of $100,000 which they hope riders can help them reach by collecting donations from family and friends in support of their ride. LACGH will celebrate cyclist’s efforts with a gift commemorating this historic first event.
This campaign is part of the foundation’s ongoing overall $3.5 million goal to cover the cost of the machine.
Construction is already underway for the site of the MRI machine, which will be next door to the hospital in the former Lenadco building. Currently the project is on target to see its patient in May of this year. Once operational, the machine will be used primarily for ‘priority four’ scans, which typically involve scans of joints such as the shoulder or knee. Its estimated LACGH will serve up to 7,000 MRI patients a year. Having an MRI on site means easier access to diagnostic services and quicker results. That can ultimately lead to better health outcomes for patients in the L&A region.