Philanthropy at work

Millions of people depend on Advocate Health Care every year.

With the help of generous donors like you, philanthropy allows Advocate to not only provide critical care—treatments for a terrifying heart attack, a car accident-induced trauma, a life-threatening cancer diagnosis—but also the community benefit programs our mission calls us to sustain.

We invite you to meet some of the people and programs who are putting your philanthropic investment to work.

The Impact of Philanthropy:
A video thank you to our donors

Filling more than just cavities
Illinois Masonic Medical Center's Mobile Dental Program is helping to fill gaps in access to oral health care.

Healing paws
Pet-therapy volunteers provide comfort and companionship to Advocate Hospice patients.

A breath of fresh air
When Reilly Auld was born, she struggled for every breath. Being transferred to Lutheran General Hospital saved her life—now her family is giving back.

Creating a lasting tribute
Julie Sutton-Osgood was only 25 when she was killed by a drunk driver. The Julie Sutton-Osgood Medical Scholarship Tribute Fund was set up as a way to make sure her life would continue to inspire others to follow their dreams.

Breast health disparities
Advocate Health Care's mammography system specialist, Terry Macarol, answers questions about the breast cancer–mortality gap and Advocate's efforts to close it.

Your gifts in action
A look at how philathropy is making a difference throughout Advocate.

Healing Gifts - Spring 2008

The robotics revolution
Lutheran General Hospital is in the vanguard of a medical revolution that promises to transform medical care as we know it. Meet its standard-bearer, internationally renowned surgeon Pier Giulianotti, M.D.

An inspiration to be shared
Good Samaritan Hospital's perinatal support program made a big difference for Kelly Wygonski seven years ago. Now she's making a difference for other famillies in crisis.

Back in action
Thanks to the excellent cardiac rehab program at Trinity Hospital, Alice Baker is once again enjoying her daily walks.

Staying connected
Keeping Jack Brunetti's many relatives and friends in the loop about his medical progress at Hope Children's Hospital has always been difficult. CarePages has made it easier.

Healing Gifts - Fall 2007

On the road again
A stroke program that combines speedy diagnosis and intervention, expert acute care, and comprehensive rehabilitation services made a dramatic difference for Norman Briggs—and for his family.

Game on
Together with a team of specialists, Michael Shrader beat his cancer in a state-of-the-art oncology center on his home turf.

Winning Spirit
Shannon Guyton's illness remained a mystery until she was transported to Advocate Lutheran General Children's Hospital—where she received the answer and the life-saving care she needed.

Q&A: Home Health
Advocate Home Health provides skilled medical care to people of all ages in the comfort of their own home.

Donor Profile: Loren Pollet from South Suburban Hospital
Meet Loren Pollet…He recently included the South Suburban Hospital in his living trust, designating a significant portion to the new Heart and Vascular Center.

Healing Gifts - Spring 2007

The spirit of giving
Saying thanks with a gift to your hospital
Vince Lovelle was grateful for the care he received at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital. Sixteen years later, he and his wife made a philanthropic gift to the surgery expansion project as a way to give back.

Now you see it, now you don't
Bringing the power of magic to the patient's bedside
Volunteer magician Ed Barry shows children that he has a few tricks up his sleeve, as he delights young patients through Advocate Hope Children's Hospital's Open Heart Magic Program.

Time to recover
Bethany's approach focuses on specialty care
Meet Thomas Coleman, whose firsthand experience with Advocate Bethany Hospital's individualized treatment has significantly improved his well-being.

Big step forward
Favorite pastimes become happy milestones with limb preservation
Two patients faced with the potential of amputation rejoice in their favorite activities after receiving treatment at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, which houses the National Center for Limb Preservation.

Healing Gifts — Winter 2006

Breaking the cycle
Repairing the trust lost to childhood physical, emotional and sexual abuse
Children suffering from abuse can heal with the right help. A group of interns training in clinical psychology is dedicated to saving the lives of abused children at Advocate’s Childhood Trauma and Treatment Program.

Twin miracle
Helping critically ill newborns grow and thrive
When Karen Hanisch delivered twins at 26 weeks, she was grateful to be at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital with its state-of-the-art neonatal intensive care unit.

Knowledge, now
Setting new nurses up for success with Chicago’s first RN residency program
Nurses can become overwhelmed during their first few months on the job. Kim Halpern, RN, and her fellow nurses benefited from a comfortable transition at Illinois Masonic Medical Center.

Congregation connections
Promoting the spiritual, emotional and physical well-being of older adults
How does computer literacy foster healthy older adults? With the guidance of Advocate Trinity Hospital, Parkway Garden Church clicks with the community to promote community health.

Healing Gifts — Summer 2006

Gone Fishing
Casting a full line of advance cardiac care services
Hugo Bliss had never had surgery before, but when he needed a new heart valve, his best bet was his own community hospital. Bliss received the support he needed from the nurses at the Cardiac Care Center at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital.

Exploring the human heart
Inspiring students with a unique view of open-heart surgery
Worried that live heart surgery would be gross, a group a teens received inspiration for healthy living ? and, possibly, future careers. Through Live?from the Heart, the surgeons at Advocate Christ Medical Center open a whole new world for the students of Wildwood School.

Run with the rest
Returning cardiac patients to their active full lives
Helen, Alma, Thelma and Jimmie found each other ? as well as strength and joy for life ? in weekly sessions of cardiac rehabilitation at Advocate South Suburban Hospital.

Trust your heart
Becoming the right place at the right time for patients with heart disease
When something told Rocco Blasi he needed to go to the hospital, he listened, and lived to tell about it. Find out what brought Blasi to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital.

Healing Gifts — Spring 2006

School of life
Instilling tomorrow’s caregivers with skill, compassion and the right attitude How do surgeons become the trusted advisors you need them to be? Years of studying, training and trial by fire in the business operating rooms in the area. Meet the surgical residents of Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Care and concern
Caring for sexual assault victims?and putting offenders in jail
When assault victims bravely come forward, a busy emergency room shouldn’t add to their trauma. Meet Nancy Healy, RN, a SANE-certified nurse who is determined to make the sexual assault treatment program at Advocate South Suburban Hospital a reality.

Cast of characters
Using every resource to give patients with chronic disease care, choices and dignity
A new consultation service helps patients and families navigate some of the hardest decisions they will ever make. Meet the palliative care team at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center.

Daddy’s girl
Offering comfort?and peace of mind?to growing families
For the birth of her first child, Jennifer Thanos was a ball of nerves. This time, with the support of Advocate experts, she’s not worried. Meet the Thanos family as they prepare for their second visit to Advocate Good Samaritan’s Family Care Center.

Past Stories
Armed with confidence
Fighting breast cancer compassionately
New ball game
Healing the concerns of congregations
This Tiny Heart Beats On