Gifts of Gratitude

The “Gifts of Gratitude Program” provides grateful patients and family members the opportunity to support Baystate Health while paying tribute to their special caregiver—the individual, or group of individuals, who made a

positive difference in their stay at the hospital, home or health center.

The “Gifts of Gratitude Program” helps advance health care and patient care delivery through unrestricted gifts that support the greatest need of the

healthcare system in the following ways: enhances programs and services at Baystate Health, supports innovative clinical education programs, assists with

the cost of patient care services not covered by medical insurance and underwrites the cost of new equipment and technology.

Connections and Relationships

• Who are the people most connected with the organization?

– Patients - people that connect with the care providers

•Inpatients - Surgery - Chronic disease management

•Outpatients - Office visits – lab services, radiology testing,

rehabilitation

•Long term care patients - Cancer – Heart Disease – COPD -

Diabetes

Gifts of Gratitude

“There is a personal touch to what they do! Sarah got the best care possible…”

Ann Reno, with daughter Sarah, Baystate Children’s Hospital grateful family.

Grateful Patients…

Tracy Opalinski, Baystate Mary Lane Hospital grateful patient.

David Warpula, Baystate Health grateful family.

Implementation

• Develop a strategic plan for administering and rolling out the program identify appropriate patient donor data base, design points of patient contact

• Gain approval from Leadership • Design and develop collateral materials

• Introduce the program system wide Educate management - care providers - staff

• Recognize all care providers

• Steward all donors connect honoree to donor through acknowledgement of gift

Approval From Leadership • Build a case for support – patients affinity to support

healthcare is based on experience

• Present the facts. It is the #1 best practice model being incorporated in hospitals across the nation.

• Provides a simple vehicle for patients to express their appreciation for good care

• Creates opportunity for future donor relationship development

• Builds employee morale and engagement as all employees are potential honorees

Develop Collateral Materials • Brochures and Videos – for admit packets, physician

practices, lobby areas and mailings

• Pins for recipient of awards to wear on collar or lapel

• Training materials for staff

• Certificates for individual and department recipients

• Note cards for the Major Gift Officers to donors

• Thank you cards for caregivers who were honored to send back to the donor to thank them for the gift

• Bookmarks that may be sent to new employees explaining the program

Educating and promoting the program

• Present the program at all manager meetings

• Distribute all brochures and training materials throughout the institution

• Use videos about program on TVs in patient rooms and main areas of the hospital

• The best training tool is honoring a caregiver in front of their managers and peers!

Raiser’s Edge Data management • Tracking and coding patients in RE is essential!

– Action Tracks (reminders)

– Relationships (solicitors, caregivers)

– Gift coding

– Constituency coding

– Proposals

– Tributes

• ImportOmatic

– Tools that helps you enter batches of patients in RE • Automatic coding

• Assigning solicitors

• Adding proposals

Direct Mail • Screening Patients Daily

– Arrange for IT to send select patient files daily

– Screen files for specific donor information

• Previous donor

• Propensity to give

• Mailings

– Monthly mailing to all patients (5,000) • Emergency Department

• Admits to Hospital

• Day stay surgeries

Personal Visits

• Major Gift Officers visit patient donors and prospects in the hospital (identified in Wealth

screening)

– Speak with the manager or nurse on duty to make sure it is ok to visit

– Introduce themselves to the patients and thank them for being a friend of the Foundation

– Inquire how their stay is going and if there is anything that they can do to help their stay be more comfortable (follow through)

Recognition for the care provider

• Gift is made in honor of a caregiver

• Foundation notifies the manager and sets up a time to visit and pin the recipient

• Certificates are awarded to group honorees

• Staff Meetings (nice to have managers or supervisors pin their employee)

– On the floor during normal work hours

– During a leadership meeting

Commemoration of the Act of Giving

Patient – Caregiver – Philanthropy

• Patient makes gift in honor of Caregiver

• Caregivers are recognized amongst peers and awarded a pin

• Caregivers are given pre-addressed thank you note to send to the patient

• Meaningful relationships are created between Patient and Baystate Health

Converting Patients to Donors

• Focusing on Patients

• Hearing Patients when they say “Thank you”

• Training Baystate Health employees to have awareness of their impact on philanthropy

• Introduce Patients to the Baystate Health Foundation

Doctors Day

Direct mail sent to all Medical Practice patients inviting them to honor their physicians.

• Includes a self addressed (foundation office) note card for them to send a personal note of thanks to their Doctor.

• Foundation distributes the cards to physicians

• 411 donors contributed over $13,000

• Distributed 420 note cards to Physicians

• Honored 235 Doctors

Questions or Comments

Thank you for your time today. Questions?

If you need to contact me with any question please call me at

(413) 794-2226 or email me at ann.donah@baystatehealth.org