FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PARK RAPIDS, MN (July 31, 2019) – CHI St. Joseph’s Health has earned Platinum recognition for its efforts to increase organ, eye, and tissue donor registrations across the state, through the Workplace Partnership for Life (WPFL) Hospital Organ Donation Campaign. The WPFL is a national initiative that unites the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the organ donation community with workplaces across the nation in spreading the word about the importance of donation.
Between October 2018 and April 2019, CHI St. Joseph’s Health participated in HRSA’s WPFL Hospital Organ Donation Campaign. The program challenges hospitals and healthcare organizations to “let life bloom” by educating their staff, patients, visitors, and communities about the critical need for organ, eye, and tissue donation and by offering them opportunities to register as donors. CHI St. Joseph’s Health earned points for completing awareness and registry activities and prompting 5 new donor registrations during the campaign period.
CHI St. Joseph’s Health was one of more than 1,480 organizations to participate in the 2019 campaign and one of 638 organizations to earn platinum recognition.
“Organ and tissue donation is an identified priority for CHI St. Joseph’s Health,” said Chris Broeker, CHI St. Joseph’s Health Director of Quality. “We have integrated awareness activities into many of our events throughout the year which truly creates a culture of giving for our staff. We are proud to partner with LifeSource in these efforts.”
This year’s Hospital Organ Donation Campaign added more than 48,000 registrations to state registries and the Puerto Rico registry, which also includes registrations from the U.S. Virgin Islands. The campaign has generated more than 492,000 registrations since its inception in 2011 and unites donation advocates at hospitals with representatives from their local organ procurement organizations, Donate Life America affiliates, and state and regional hospital associations.
Every 10 minutes, another person is added to the organ transplant list, reaffirming the critical and growing need for registered organ, eye, and tissue donors. For more information about the Hospital Campaign, visit www.organdonor.gov/hospitals. To sign up as a donor, go to https://lifesourcedonorregistry.org/
CHI St. Joseph’s Health was among a select group of hospitals nationwide recognized for promoting organ, eye, and tissue donation. Pictured (L-R): Anna Hudson, CHI St. Joseph’s Health Volunteer; Barb Nelson-Agnew, LifeSource Hospital Liaison; and Chris Broeker, CHI St. Joseph’s Health Director of Quality.
About CHI St. Joseph’s Health
CHI St. Joseph’s Health is a 25-bed critical access hospital serving communities in Hubbard, Becker, Cass and Wadena Counties since 1946. In recent years, CHI St. Joseph’s Health’s award-winning teams received several national honors including: The Joint Commission Top Performer on Key Quality Measures in surgery: Top 100 Critical Access Hospital, HealthStrong; WomenCertified’s America’s Best Hospitals Women’s Choice Award in obstetrics; and the Studer Group Fire Starter Healthcare Organization of the Month among other national, regional and state recognition’s.
About CHI
Catholic Health Initiatives, a nonprofit, faith-based health system formed in 1996 through the consolidation of four Catholic health systems, expresses its mission each day by creating and nurturing healthy communities in the hundreds of sites across the nation where we provide care. The nation’s third largest nonprofit health system, Englewood, Colorado-based CHI operates in 18 states and comprises 103 hospitals, including four academic health centers and major teaching hospitals as well as 30 criticalaccess facilities; community health-services organizations; accredited nursing colleges; home-health agencies; living communities; and other facilities and services that span the inpatient and outpatient continuum of care. In fiscal year 2015, CHI provided almost $970 million in charity care and community benefit – an 8% increase over the previous year — for programs and services for the poor, free clinics, education and research. Charity care and community benefit totaled more than $1.6 billion with the inclusion of the unpaid costs of Medicare. The health system, which generated operating revenues of $15.2 billion in fiscal year 2015, has total assets of approximately $23 billion. Learn more at
www.catholichealthinitiatives.org.
Contact: Sonja Day
Communication/Marketing Manager
CHI St. Joseph’s Health
600 Pleasant Avenue
Park Rapids, MN 56470
218.616.3383