Hospital staff donates over $16,000 to Foundation’s Annual Appeal Campaign
VMH staff donations purchase new ultrasound table ... The Veterans Memorial Hospital Staff donated over $16,000 in personal donations last year to the hospital Foundation in order to purchase equipment identified by the staff that is needed to better serve the community. Pictured above, left to right, are hospital employees Becki Estebo, Housekeeper and Marlene Dahlstrom, Ward Clerk in the X–ray department with the new pelvic ultrasound table that was purchased through these staff donations. Many pelvic ultrasounds are performed each week and up until the time of this purchase, they were performed on a cot which was uncomfortable for both the patient and the tech. This new table allows for much more comfort and safety getting the patient on and off the table. Submitted photo.
VMH staff donate in support of new children’s play area ... A new children’s play area was also added at the main entrance of Veterans Memorial Hospital, just inside the doors in the front lobby. Two wall activity boards and many other items to keep youth occupied were purchased with some of these staff donations. Pictured with these items is Shannen Mezera, Massage Therapist and Chuck Votsmier, Maintenance. Submitted photo.
Second massage therapy room now available at VMH ... Donations from Veterans Memorial Hospital staff also paid for the construction of the second massage therapy room in the Healthy Lifestyles Rehabilitation Center at the hospital. With the growing number of massage clients, a second massage room was needed to help meet this demand. Now two massages can be going on at the same time in the two separate rooms, which has been very beneficial for couples who want to travel to the hospital together and have a massage at the same time instead of having to wait for each other. Pictured above, left to right, are massage therapists Shannen Mezera, Vicki Klepper and Crystal Corwin. Submitted photo.
The staff of Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) pledged over $16,000 this last year to the VMH Health Care Foundation’s annual appeal campaign. The total raised in personal staff contributions was used to purchase equipment and furnishings identified by the staff that is needed in the hospital to better serve the community.
“I am once again overwhelmed by our staff’s generosity this past year,” states Mike Myers, hospital administrator. “Our staff members on the Culture Committee took a leadership role in identifying hospital-wide needs, setting a financial goal, and organizing this employee campaign which was extremely successful. This process is an indication of the great dedication the hospital staff has to the service of our patients.”
This fund drive is held each fall for all staff at Veterans Memorial Hospital and consistently raises over $14,000 each year for upgrades in equipment and furnishings recommended by the staff.
This past year, many items were purchased with the thousands of dollars donated by the hospital staff. One of the largest items purchased last year was a Pelvic Ultrasound table. Many pelvic ultrasounds are performed each week and up until the time of this purchase, they were performed on a cot which was uncomfortable for both the patient and the tech. This new table allows for much more comfort and safety getting the patient on and off the table.
A new child’s play area was also added at the main entrance of the hospital, just inside the doors in the front lobby. Two wall activity boards and many other items to keep youth occupied were purchased with some of these staff donations.
Donations from staff also paid for the construction of the second massage therapy room in the Healthy Lifestyles Rehabilitation Center at the hospital. With the growing number of massage clients, a second massage room was needed to help meet this demand. Now two massages can be going on at the same time in the two separate rooms, which has been very beneficial for couples who want to travel to the hospital together and have a massage at the same time instead of having to wait for each other.
The dedicated staff at VMH provides this type of monetary support to Veterans Memorial Hospital each year. Already another $12,000 plus has been pledged to the hospital for many needed pieces of equipment that will now be purchased this upcoming year, including a portable telemetry O2 monitor, UV lights for disinfecting patient rooms, blood pressure machines, an ambulance CO2 gas monitor, privacy signage for the ER entrance and report room windows, a tractor loader for the maintenance department, medication trays for home care patients and a microwave for use by patient families.
The Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation’s annual direct mail campaign was mailed out to the area communities served by the hospital in late November. The funds raised in this annual campaign will be used to help purchase a new anesthesia machine for the Surgery Department at Veterans Memorial Hospital. Veterans Memorial Hospital Surgery Services offers a variety of general surgeries such as colonoscopies, EGD, hernia repair, gallbladder removal and c-sections, to name a few.
Plus, specialties such as orthopedic surgery, podiatry, ophthalmology (cataract) and now bone marrow concentrate injections are performed regularly in VMH Operating Room. Every one of these procedures requires the use of a state-of-the-art anesthesia machine. This needed machine is used by the highly experienced Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists on the hospital’s Surgery team.
Donations are currently being accepted by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation for this new anesthesia machine. The Veterans Memorial Hospital Health Care Foundation is an independent nonprofit organization that supports the hospital and other health care related needs in northeast Iowa. As a 501C3 organization, all gifts to the Foundation are tax deductible. Anyone with any questions about the campaign or Foundation is invited to call the hospital at 563-568-3411.
