Maple Grove Hospital Fund: A New Way to Give Back
Over the past nine years, Maple Grove Hospital has had the honor of caring for Maple Grove and the surrounding communities. As we continue to grow, we look to expand the care and services we provide for the betterment of everyone.
After hearing from the community that they wanted a way to give back, the North Memorial Health Foundation launched the Maple Grove Hospital Fund (MGH Fund). Less than a year into its fruition, the MGH Fund is already making a big impact. Through the generosity of donors, we’ve created better connections between parents and their babies, as well as offering holistic care options to complement medical treatments. This fund also supports critical programs and services that help modernize technology and facilities, and expand education opportunities and healthcare access. I sat down with Wendy Ulferts, vice president of patient care and chief nursing officer, and Dr. Pam Doorenbos, vice president of medical affairs, both of whom are members of the MGH Fund Committee, to learn how the MGH Fund is improving lives within the community.
Q: What impacts have already been made on the community because of philanthropic gifts to Maple Grove Hospital?
Dr. Pam Doorenbos (PD): Donor gifts have enabled us to purchase NICview cameras which we will begin utilizing this summer in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). These cameras are similar to baby monitors, except that they provide advanced security and allow families with premature babies to watch their babies in the incubators from anywhere in the world. This helps parents to feel OK about leaving the hospital at times to be with their other kids or take care of other responsibilities. The money raised through the MGH Fund has also given us the ability to provide My Preemie Baby Books to every family with a baby born early; it’s a way for parents to journal their experience and baby’s milestones. The authors of those books are parents whose twins were born four months early within our system.
Wendy Ulferts (WU): Gifts from our supporters have also been instrumental in expanding our Integrative Therapies program, which focuses on holistic healing. The MGH Fund was able to offer training in healing touch for team members, which is a method they use to help patients with pain management and anxiety issues. Through donor support we were also able to offer acupressure bands, which help patients control nausea without medication.
Q: Are donors able to direct their
gift toward a specific program or department?
Wendy Ulferts (WU): Yes. We have a general fund, where the money goes to whatever area of the hospital has the need. We have a fund that supports our Perinatal Bereavement Program, which provides resources for families who have experienced pregnancy or newborn loss. We also have a scholarship fund for our youth volunteers and a team member crisis fund which helps with unexpected financial hardships. The newest fund we’ve established is our NICU fund, which will go toward helping grow our services for premature or critically ill babies and their families. The list of funds will continue to expand as we identify needs and as donors want to support specific programs or departments.
Q: What motivated the creation of the Maple Grove Hospital Fund?
Wendy Ulferts (WU): Grateful patients and their families, individual donors and corporate leaders were looking for a way to give back directly to Maple Grove Hospital. Our hope was to create something where people see their dollars being used and see that either their work or their care is being positively impacted. The MGH Fund puts 100 percent of the donations toward enhancing the programs and services that we provide and that are a vital resource to the community.
Dr. Pam Doorenbos (PD):We’re contributing to a community that we all collectively want to see grow and become better. Over the years, Maple Grove and the surrounding communities have seen a lot of change and the hospital is a piece of that. But our motivation is really about the people in the community and their inspiring stories — we want to do everything we can to support and best serve them when it comes to their overall health and well-being. Until recently there wasn’t a direct opportunity that allowed them to give to the organization they felt a part of. The Fund has been something we’ve talked about for years, organizationally we just needed to find the right time to do it and that time is now.
Q: Why are people are so passionate about supporting Maple Grove Hospital?
Wendy Ulferts (WU): It’s a way people can support a cause they’re passionate about. Whether they’re a patient or team member, they can impact the care for people at Maple Grove Hospital — and help others have the same amazing experience they’ve had. It’s just really, I think, a new way for them to show gratitude and memorialize something that’s had a profound impact in their lives. It’s also an opportunity to give money that becomes tax deductible.
Learn more about the Maple Grove Hospital Fund.