St. Luke’s to Use $25M for Spine Care, New Rehab Center

A Kansas City hospital network plans to use $25 million in donations to expand spine care offerings and establish a new rehab center in the area.

St. Luke's Health System will invest the donation by the Marion and Henry Bloch Family Foundation over the next five years, the Kansas City Star reported .

"The Bloch family has touched and improved countless lives through their continued support," said Melinda Estes, president and CEO of the health system.

St. Luke's officials said the funds will help establish a "Spine Center of Excellence" at St. Luke's Marion Bloch Neuroscience Institute in Kansas City, Missouri. The spine center will include more clinical care options and allow for additional research, according to officials.

"(It will be) a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to spine care, providing treatment for patients with all types of spine issues," said Cheerag Upadhyaya, the institute's surgical director.

The donation will also help open a rehabilitation center next year at St. Luke's South Hospital in Overland Park, Kansas. The center will use robotic technology to help people recover from spinal injuries and other conditions.

St. Luke's and the University of Kansas Hospital were both named to the latest Becker's Hospital Review list of "100 hospitals and health systems with great neurosurgery and spine programs."