Hospitals are adding a personal touch to their fundraising efforts. For example, board members at East Phillips County Hospital District in Colorado have started "friend-raising," an attempt to raise community awareness and support of the hospital, in addition to raising money.
For the past six months, the hospital board has been meeting with local businesses and organizations to offer information about the hospital, find out what issues are important to the community, address any existing concerns, and more importantly, give community members a chance to ask questions, reports the Holyoke Enterprise.
Communication is key, according to board member Gary Rahe. The hospital board has been using the personal meetings to communicate with the public.
So far, the friend-raising efforts seem to be working. According to Administrator John Ayoub, the hospital recieved a $9,500 grant to purchase additional pulse oximetry equipment for ambulances and the laboratory, notes the Holyoke Enterprise. The hospital also received a planning preparedness grant for the clinic and a safety grant for the hospital of almost $22,000.
With such results, the hospital board members say they will continue to meet with community members for another six months, notes the article.
Onslow Memorial Hospital in North Carolina also has found success with friend-raising activities, generating enough support to build a $7 million Radiation Oncology Center, which opened Aug. 19, 2010, according to the hospital's website.
As costs continue to escalate and reform burdens hospitals with more patients to treat, charitable contributions are becoming increasingly important for allowing non-profit facilities to continue to provide quality care; perhaps personal friend-raising can help these facilities manage their financial needs.
For more:
- read the Holyoke Enterprise article
- check out the Onslow Memorial website