A gift from – and for – the heart

Anne Fraulo of Hamden had a special connection with the Hospital of Saint Raphael, where she worked her first job out of college, later volunteered and eventually became a generous donor. Fraulo passed away in 2013, but a gift she bequeathed to the Saint Raphael Campus will help others for many years to come. On Sept. 24, Yale New Haven leaders, physicians and staff unveiled a plaque designating that gift in the Heart and Vascular Center’s Nuclear Cardiology unit. With Fraulo’s generosity, the hospital was able to purchase a SPECT/CT camera that provides detailed, high-quality images to help physicians assess cardiovascular disease. The first production model to be used in the U.S., the camera can accommodate bariatric patients and provide faster scans with lower doses of radiotracers. Unveiling the plaque were (l-r): Francine LoRusso, RN, vice president, Patient Services, Heart and Vascular and Transplantation centers and Medicine Services; Ray Amendola, senior manager, HVC Cardiac Diagnostic unit; Sister Ann Matthew Lorusso, RN, parish nurse coordinator; Keith Churchwell, MD, senior vice president, Heart and Vascular and Transplantation; and John Cipriano Jr., Fraulo’s attorney.