Bellin College Donates Advanced Ultrasound Equipment to The Health Wagon

(Wise, Va.) — Access to advanced diagnostic imaging in rural Appalachia is expanding thanks to a generous equipment donation from Bellin College to The Health Wagon. The contribution includes high-quality sonography systems that will enhance the organization’s ability to provide cardiovascular, vascular, and abdominal imaging for underserved patients throughout Southwest Virginia.

Among the donated equipment is a Philips IU33 ultrasound system configured with a comprehensive echocardiography package and vascular probes, representing a significant upgrade to The Health Wagon’s current cardiac imaging capabilities. A full-size ultrasound unit manufactured by Toshiba, equipped with multiple probes suitable for abdominal and vascular studies, is also being provided to support expanded diagnostic services.

The donation builds on an ongoing service partnership between the college and the rural healthcare nonprofit, which has hosted Bellin students on clinical service trips to Virginia for the past two years.

“Bellin College has been traveling to Virginia with students for the last two years,” said Amanda Hogan, DBA, RDMS, RDCS, RVT, RTR, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Allied Health Sciences & Sonography Program Director. “The opportunity to serve and share our skills and talents to improve healthcare is something that cannot be taught in a classroom. We are blessed to be able to donate sonography equipment to better serve the communities in Virginia.”

Dr. Teresa Tyson, DNP, FNP-BC, President and CEO of The Health Wagon, said the equipment will directly improve patient outcomes by expanding access to critical diagnostic testing close to home.

“This donation represents far more than new equipment — it represents earlier diagnoses, better management of chronic disease, and lifesaving cardiac screening for patients who might otherwise go without,” Tyson said. “Bellin College’s continued partnership demonstrates what is possible when education and service come together to improve health equity in rural America.”

“This is such a blessing to us and a great start to 2026,” said Paula Hill-Collins, DNP, FNP-BC, Vice-President/Chief Clinical Director of The Health Wagon. “We are so excited and so thankful!Words really don't express how thankful the whole organization is for this very generous and needed gift.”

Health Wagon leaders say the upgraded imaging technology will help providers detect heart disease, vascular conditions, and other serious health concerns earlier, reducing the need for patients to travel long distances for specialty testing.

About the Health Wagon:

The Health Wagon is a nurse practitioner managed clinic that has been in existence since 1980 which provides free medical, vision and health care services along with sliding scale dental care services in Lee, Scott, Wise, Dickenson, Buchanan, Washington and Russell Counties and Norton City. For more information about The Health Wagon, please call 276-328-8850 or visit www.thehealthwagon.org. If you would like to donate to the Health Wagon, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, please visit: www.thehealthwagon.org/donate.