SPRINGFIELD — The Orthopedic Center of Illinois Foundation (OCIF) announced July 16 that the Lincoln Land Community College Foundation was selected to receive $20,000 as the beneficiary for the 18th Annual OCIF Open: Chip in fore Charity. The grant will be funded through proceeds from the OCIF annual golf outing scheduled for Sept. 20 at Illini Country Club and support LLCC's sonography program, specifically to purchase butterfly IQ handheld ultrasound units that will enable students in the LLCC diagnostic medical sonography program to sharpen their scanning abilities and engage in critical hands-on learning.

“We are very excited to support the LLCC diagnostic medical sonography program through the Lincoln Land Community College Foundation,” said OCIF Board President Tim VanFleet, M.D. “We are proud to be able to provide funding for ultrasound equipment that will result in superiorly trained professional sonographers in the Springfield and surrounding health care communities.”

LLCC’s diagnostic medical sonography program launched in 2020 in response to a longstanding and continuing need for sonographers in central Illinois. Dr. Charlotte Warren, president of LLCC, says, “We are thrilled to partner with the Orthopedic Center of Illinois to help LLCC meet a critical health need and provide a pipeline of professional sonographers for our central Illinois health care systems.”

“The pandemic showed us that we need to be flexible and have the capacity to shift our operations quickly if necessary,” says Leigh Giles-Brown, LLCC diagnostic medical sonography program director. “It also expanded our teaching modes to offer more options for students. Our students will be better prepared to support emergency and critical care ultrasounds on the job and work as an effective member of a health care team.”