Kansas University Hospital announced Monday that its cardiologists and heart surgeons have raised more than $2 million for a lead gift to begin an endowment to support the hospital’s heart program.

Using the slogan “Advancing the future of heart care … together,” the physicians of the hospital-owned practices of Mid-America Cardiology and MidAmerica Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons contributed $2.1 million over the next 10 years to establish the endowment.

The fund is unrestricted, meaning it can be used for anything in the heart program that relates to patient care, such as patient-education programs, staff training and advanced education, new quality initiatives, patient and family resources, leading-edge equipment and clinical research projects.

“The generosity of these physicians since joining our hospital in 2001 simply cannot be overstated,” Bob Page, president and CEO, said.