Mayo assists ambulance company in buying new heart monitors

A local hospital is helping an area ambulance association purchase new heart monitors for the back of its rigs.

Mayo Health System of La Crosse gave the Caledonia Ambulance Service $10,000 in its effort to replace its two units.

The time is running out to replace them.

“We’re working to replace both monitors by 2022, when the equipment will be obsolete,” Caledonia ambulance director Mike Tornstrom said. “We want to make sure the equipment is top notch and state of the art at all times.”

The new monitors, which cost about $25,000 apiece, will be more advanced than the current machines.

The timing coincides with the ambulance company’s recent move to a more intense level of care.

“Caledonia, a year ago, went from a basic life support ambulance service to a part time advanced life support service,” Tornstrom said, “so we need to be prepared.”

The connections between the two run deep, as four Mayo employees also assist in the ambulance crew, and most of the calls that the ambulance takes, brings them to Mayo in La Crosse.