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St. Elizabeth Hospital Community Foundation awards more than $35,000 in grants

08 / 01 / 2006

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APPLETON, Wis. – The St. Elizabeth Hospital Community Foundation has awarded more than $35,000 in grants to support Affinity Health System programs and services in Outagamie and Calumet counties, as well as northern Winnebago County.

• Calumet Medical Center received $17,721 to purchase a non-invasive cardiac support pump. The pump assists in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by performing chest compressions during CPR. Using the device increases blood flow to the heart by 33 percent over CPR performed manually.A 2005 report by the American Hospital Association and the American Heart Association recommends there be 30 compressions per two breaths when performing CPR. The previous standard was 15 compressions per two breaths. The support pump will assist in performing these compressions, reducing fatigue among emergency personnel.Barbara Ott, manager of Emergency Services at Calumet Medical Center, states, “We are implementing leading-edge standards of care for cardiopulmonary resuscitation. This device will allow our paramedics and staff to perform CPR while administering medication and other immediate needs. To put it simply, more lives will be saved because this device gives us an extra set of hands in life threatening emergencies.”
• A grant of $4,450 was awarded to the St. Elizabeth Hospital Pediatrics unit for educational electronic media units for inpatient pediatric patients. The bedside unit provides an avenue for children and their families to educate themselves about diseases, learn age-related health tips, and learn how to prevent accidents. “This hands-on approach will allow patients and their families a means of learning through play and fun,” says Patricia Meyer, a pediatrics nurse clinician at St. Elizabeth Hospital. “The best way kids learn and interact with others is through play. We see this service as greatly benefiting our pediatric inpatient population.”

Other grants awarded include:

• Funds directed to the St. Elizabeth Hospital Palliative Care program for comfort care amenity baskets containing snacks, personal care items and educational literature for families keeping vigil over a dying loved one at the hospital.
• Kits containing basic necessities for patients receiving care at the St. Elizabeth Hospital Behavioral Health unit.
• Funding for the “Pathway to Peace” program, which trains medical professionals about pregnancy, newborn and infant loss and provides tools to assist those in the grieving process.

The St. Elizabeth Hospital Community Foundation, which celebrates its 30^th anniversary this year, is dedicated to living out the healing ministry of Christ with a special emphasis on those in need, by generating, stewarding and distributing funds to enhance the quality of Affinity Heath System’s services and programs, and other community health care initiatives.

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For the Editor:
Affinity Health System, a faith-based regional health care network, is the Fox Valley’s second-largest employer, according to the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce & Industry. For the fourth consecutive year, Affinity has been named one of the nation’s top 64 health systems based on clinical performance according to Thomson Reuters, a leading provider of information and solutions to improve the cost and quality of health care. For ten consecutive years, Affinity Health System has been named to the SDI (formerly Verispan) Integrated Health Network Top 100, an annual assessment of the 100 most highly integrated health care networks in the nation. Both St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton and Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh rank among the top 1 percent of hospitals nationwide in terms of quality and efficiency, as determined by the 2007 Premier | CareScience Select practice National Quality Award. Members of Affinity include Mercy Medical Center and Mercy Health Foundation, Oshkosh; St. Elizabeth Hospital and the St. Elizabeth Hospital Foundation, Appleton; Affinity Medical Group, a regional network of 25 family practice and specialty clinics – 22 of which are recognized as NCQA Level III medical homes, the highest level of recognition – in 14 communities; Calumet Medical Center, Chilton; and Affinity Occupational Health.