Health Care Issues

The Gift of Advancing Healthcare
Philanthropy helps medical centers in many important ways. It is obvious that dollars given to support healthcare and hospitals are important to sustaining healthcare excellence in our communities. While support can be made for dollars being given to medical and disease-related research because those funds help develop and provide new therapies to treat or cure a specific medical problem, gifts to hospitals and medical centers help bring the research results to the actual point of care.

We have witnessed advances in medical technology that have occurred in Peoria. Examples of these advances are seen in robotic surgery, which provides for greater precision and less invasive treatment of small children and adults, and the use of radiological treatments such as a gamma knife for neurosurgical procedures. Some of us have personally experienced these advances in medical science. The research which leads to medical advances should be available to our friends and families in our communities. These types of advances are being made available in part by philanthropic support from our community.

Philanthropic support can help leverage bond financing, which enables medical centers to build or improve facilities, acquire new technologies and ultimately help recruit new medical specialists to Peoria. In the current environment for healthcare, bond financing rating agencies use philanthropic support among many factors to develop their ratings which, when favorable, reduce the cost of financing technology acquisition and facility development.

Donor gifts, therefore, have a significant impact on what hospitals can accomplish. In order to sustain excellence, medical centers must be improving the facilities where they provide medical services with the greatest care and love. Medical equipment must be upgraded regularly to provide for advances in treatments and therapies available to patients in our community. Philanthropy also allows for this care to be provided in a way that supports the family and the patient, thereby, enhancing their recovery and healing.

Today, more than ever, donors and their gifts help provide medical care and treatment to children, the elderly and individuals who are financially challenged to pay for their medical care. The cost of providing care to individuals and families who cannot cover these costs themselves cannot be borne by the providers alone. We as a community need to help provide these benefits to those who are less fortunate. Beyond providing help to those who are in need, we can through our gifts, help medical centers bring about new treatment methods and give our friends and family the best care available. Your gift dollars can help save a life (and lives) and restore individuals to their families. IBI