Family gives $1M to hospital

Providence St. Joseph Medical Center is one step closer to diagnosing people just like they do on television.

Thanks to a $1-million contribution to the new Hycy and Howard Hill Neuroscience Institute from the Cusumano family of Burbank, the hospital can now buy high-tech diagnostic equipment for the new facility.

The Cusumanos, who own a real estate firm, earmarked the money to fund a neurovascular X-ray system that will provide sharp three-dimension images for procedures, allowing physicians to see tiny, intricate blood vessels from all angles. The cutting-edge equipment will help doctors map treatments and surgeries for patients with strokes, aneurysms or other brain injuries, according to the hospital.

“This seemed like the greatest need at the medical center,” said Michael Cusumano. “We had the opportunity to do something for neurodiagnostics, and it looked like the most important opportunity for us to continue our support.”

As a thank you, the hospital is naming the institute’s Neurodiagnostic Center after the Cusumanos.

“This is a very touching gift, especially given the magnitude of it,” said Barry A. Wolfman, chief executive of Providence St. Joseph’s. “It helps ensure that Saint Joseph’s will remain state-of-the-art and be the kind of facility we’re proud to have in the community.”

The contribution is the largest single nonprofit contribution the family has ever made.

Michael Cusumano believes it is fitting the family milestone is for the Providence St. Joseph Foundation after his mother, Anita Cusumano Strom, spent decades as a volunteer at the hospital.

“The technology is really amazing, and the potential is there to have a positive impact on our lives,” he said. “We wanted to make a contribution that was meaningful and have an immediate impact at the medical center.”

The Hycy and Howard Hill Neuroscience Institute will open its doors later this spring and be the first comprehensive center in the San Fernando Valley to focus on neuroscience and allow doctors to treat neurological disorders in one location, according to the hospital.