KCH Receives $25K Grant From FHB

Kona Community Hospital and Kona Hospital Foundation leaders accept the grant from Reginald Morimoto with First Hawaiian Bank. KCH courtesy photo.

Kona Community Hospital was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the First Hawaiian Bank Foundation.

The grant funds will assist the hospital in acquiring a new telemetry system.

Hospital officials say a Philips IntelliVue Cardiac System is currently on order. The telemetry system assists in monitoring heart rate, heart rhythm, breathing, and other vitals at a patient’s bedside and at a remote location, like a nurse’s station.

KCH’s current system must be retired by June.

“We’re very thankful for this generous grant, which aligns with First Hawaiian Bank Foundation’s commitment to building healthier communities,” said Judi Nakamaru, Kona Hospital Foundation Vice Chair. “It will help to improve the cardiac technology that is available at Kona Community Hospital.”

The new telemetry system is set to be installed during the first quarter of 2016. An additional three patients will be able to be monitored on the system and it will be used daily to monitor patients in the hospital’s Medical/Surgical Department and the Intensive Care Unit.

“First Hawaiian’s continued long-standing support for Kona Hospital is part of our commitment to ensuring quality health services for the Big Island community,” said Sharon Shiroma Brown, president of the First Hawaiian Bank Foundation. “Kona Hospital’s new high-tech telemetry system will provide its patients peace of mind knowing that they are receiving the highest level of care.”