Faster access to life-saving heart diagnostics

New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Friday, April 24, 2026, …. Patients at Aberdeen Hospital are benefitting from a dramatic improvement in wait times for echocardiograms. The demand for these heart scans once outweighed what the hospital’s one technologist and echocardiography machine could provide. Thanks to the purchase of a new machine, funded by the Aberdeen Health Foundation, wait times have now been reduced by as much as 70 per cent, making a life-changing difference for patients and families.

An echocardiogram is a test to measure the size, shape, movement and flow of blood through the heart. The safe and painless test uses soundwaves (ultrasound) to get a picture of the heart that specialists can then use to detect or rule our certain heart diseases.

Lindsey Patterson, now Operations Lead at Aberdeen Hospital, helped identify the need when managing the ICU and Non-Invasive Cardiac Investigation. “We had one full-time sonographer and ultrasound machine, and were challenged to keep up with the need,” she remembers. “You feel really terrible having to tell someone it’s going to be a year and a half before they get this test completed to receive a diagnosis.”

Knowing something had to change, Lindsey brought forward a request to the Foundation for funding. With the new machine in place and an additional technologist hired, the impact was immediate. “Within six months, the wait dropped from 18 months to weeks,” says Miranda Thomson, Manager of Diagnostic Imaging and Non-Invasive Cardiac Investigation.

Photo caption: Thanks to an echocardiography machine funded by the Aberdeen Health Foundation, wait times at Aberdeen Hospital have been reduced from up to 18 months to just weeks. Left to right: Robyn Wilson, Cardiac Sonographer; Lindsey Patterson, Health Services Manager and Operations Lead; Marsha Sobey, Acquisitions Co-Chair, Aberdeen Health Foundation; Nicole Kirkendall, Cardiac Sonographer; Miranda Thomson, Manager Diagnostic Imaging and Non-Invasive Cardiac Investigation.

The difference has been felt across the hospital. Urgent cases are happening sooner, inpatient discharges happen more quickly, and staff have the backup they need. “Before, if our only sonographer was away, there were times we had no echo services at all,” Miranda explains. “Now, she has that support and patients continue to receive the care they need.”

For families, the impact is hard to put into words. Margie Walsh remembers what it felt like when her mother, Marion Nicholson, needed diagnostic testing. “She was having a lot of issues and didn’t know what was going on,” Margie recalls. “Heart disease runs in our family, so she was very scared…when they told her it would be an eight-month wait for the heart scan, honestly, I thought that was going to be the end of her. She was so scared, so upset and so nervous.”

The second echocardiography machine was introduced shortly after, and Marion was able to get an appointment right away. The scan revealed that her heart was healthy, allowing doctors to look elsewhere for answers. That search led to the discovery of a bowel issue that required emergency surgery. “That earlier scan was life-saving for her, really,” Margie says. “And also for her mental health, just knowing she was being attended to faster than an eight-month wait.”

Stories like Marion’s show how much can change when a community invests in local care. “Having Foundation support for the equipment we use every day is vital to keeping rural hospitals like ours going,” adds Miranda.

As the Aberdeen Health Foundation marks its 40th anniversary, Board Chair Heather MacDonald says this project perfectly reflects the Foundation’s values. “One of our main goals is to support projects that make care easier to reach,” she says. “We also look for ways to make the most of donor support by investing in projects where every dollar goes as far as possible. When Lindsey identified a need that could make an immediate difference for patients, we knew it was the right fit. It’s an example of how hospital staff, the Foundation, and system partners can work together to make a real difference in patients’ lives.”

For Lindsey, seeing these kinds of outcomes has been especially meaningful. “When I think of my career as a manager, this stands out as a real success story,” she says. “It was a huge win for the Aberdeen.”

——————————————

The Aberdeen Health Foundation is the leading charity for enhancing health care in Pictou County. In 2025, the Foundation invested over $3 million to fund medical equipment and enhance health programs at the Aberdeen Hospital and in the community. Your contribution can be the catalyst for even greater change — find out how you can make an impact here.