New Year's Resolution No. 1 - Be More Grateful!
There are many ways to say "Thank you!" We are taught at a young age to say thank you to others who have been kind to us, who have given us an opportunity or gift, or who have simply always been there for us when we were in need of help. For more than a year, the Beebe Medical Foundation, the fundraising arm of Beebe Healthcare, has shared weekly gratitude stories in our Tuesday series of Celebrating Excellent Care articles by inviting the community to consider thanking a Beebe team member (doctor, nurse, staff) with an appreciation certificate and donation given in their honor.
Every day, at over seven locations countywide, countless grateful patients talk about their excellent experiences of extraordinary care and compassion with Beebe team members. This exciting program invites grateful patients to celebrate the compassion and care they received at Beebe by sharing their story publicly. Research has proven that saying thank you for changing or saving one's life helps complete the healing process; it allows a grateful patient to be in control again, and creates a sense of new life and happiness. In an article published by Harvard Health Publications, the authors put it quite succinctly, "Saying thank you may be one of the simplest ways to feel happier.” (The Harvard Mental Health Letter, November 2011). Other studies have suggested that charitable giving at high rates of frequency may protect patients from the onset of new health issues when faced with a new stressor (Poulin, 2013). The Celebrate Excellent Care program provides the opportunity for a grateful patient to say thank you, and to recognize a Beebe team member by making a gift to the nonprofit healthcare system.
Over the past year, hundreds of Beebe team members have been honored with a donation to the Beebe Medical Foundation, and have received a thank you certificate and celebratory pin to proudly wear on their uniform. Each recognized team member is presented with the Celebrating Excellent Care certificate personally by the grateful patient. Instead of sending cookies, flowers or cakes, patients make a donation that will truly make a difference to countless lives and help satisfy the growing needs of Beebe by providing equipment, etc. Every thankful patient who participates in the program will receive a Celebrating Excellent Care vehicle magnet to proudly display. No doubt you have seen these pins and magnets throughout Beebe Healthcare and our community.
It even gets better! Charitable giving was shown to reduce overall mortality rates in older adults by as much as 47 percent (Okun, 2013). Giving makes you happier, healthier and live longer! The Beebe Medical Foundation is proud to sponsor this program and each week to highlight in this column the success stories of countless grateful patients who live, work or visit Beebe locations in their time of need. As you make your New Year's resolutions to be healthier, might you consider also making a resolution to be more grateful and thank a doctor, nurse, or staff member of Beebe who has changed or saved your life, or the life of a loved one?
Beebe Healthcare's charitable mission is to encourage healthy living, prevent illness, and restore optimal health with the people residing, working, or visiting in the communities in Sussex County. Beebe's vision is for Sussex County to be one of the healthiest counties in the nation.
As a community-owned, not-for-profit hospital system, Beebe continues to depend on the generous support of individuals, corporations, businesses, and private foundations. All gifts, large or small, to Beebe Healthcare are tax deductible and are channeled through Beebe Medical Foundation.
To learn more about how you can Celebrate Excellent Care, contact the Beebe Medical Foundation at 302-644-2900, or write to foundation@beebehealthcare.org.
