Montage Health Foundation 2023 Impact Report

2023 Impact Report

Dear friends,

We are excited to share with you the incredible impacts your generosity had on our organization and the people we serve throughout 2023. Your partnership is instrumental in advancing Montage Health’s mission to improve care for patients and strengthen the health of our community.

As we reflect on the past year’s accomplishments, we are filled with gratitude for your ongoing investment. This year Montage Health celebrates our 90th anniversary of caring for our community, and we are inspired to look ahead to what we can accomplish over the next 90 years thanks to supporters like you.

We invite you to celebrate these achievements with us and to share in the pride of knowing that you have played a vital role in Montage Health’s success. Together, we are transforming healthcare and building healthier, happier communities.

Thank you once again for your invaluable support. We look forward to continuing this journey together and making an even greater impact in the years to come.

Ryan Edwards Chair, Board of Trustees Montage Health Foundation

Kevin Causey Vice President and Chief Development Officer Montage Health Foundation

2023 Impact Report

Table of contents

Montage Health Foundation at a glance

Our focus

2023 impact at a glance

Your philanthropy in action

Donor spotlight: Armetta Hamilton’s healthcare legacy

Advancing clinical innovation: Using robots to support human-to-human care

Enhancing the patient experience: Supporting patients throughout their cancer journey

Investing in workforce excellence: Building professional pathways for nurses

Improving community health: Inspiring healthy habits for Monterey County youth

Addressing emerging needs: Improving mental health for youth and families

Your service in action

Brightening days for patients, visitors, and staff

Supporting self-care for patients during cancer treatment

Providing dignity and compassion at the end of life

Growing the next generation of healthcare heroes

Bringing smiles with wagging tails

Offering spiritual comfort and support Supporting the healing environment

for healing: The Art Program

a brighter future together

YOU

Foundation leadership

Continue making a difference

Montage Health Foundation at a glance

Our mission

Since 2017, Montage Health Foundation has helped sustain Montage Health’s vital work through grants, volunteerism, and philanthropic partnerships with compassionate community members and like-minded organizations.

Montage Health, your locally owned and operated nonprofit healthcare system, improves lives by delivering exceptional care and inspiring the pursuit of optimal health. Our organization serves communities across Monterey County through our outstanding hospital, medical group, urgent care clinics, wellness centers, local health plans, skilled nursing facility, and nationally recognized youth mental health program.

Our focus

Support from Montage Health Foundation addresses critical community health needs, expands access to care, advances clinical innovation, enhances the patient experience, and delivers high quality, affordable, integrated care to our entire community — including people who are insured through government programs, underinsured, or uninsured.

2023 Impact at a glance

Thanks to the generosity of 821 donors and 491 volunteers like you, in 2023 Montage Health Foundation: to Monterey County students exploring healthcare careers

to Montage Health programs strengthening healthcare for our community Granted $11 million

Awarded $695,000 in scholarships to enhance the patient experience Provided 82,000 hours of volunteer service

Community partners celebrate the Ohana campus opening in November

Donor spotlight: Armetta Hamilton’s healthcare legacy

Armetta Hamilton began her nursing career with Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula on September 9, 1967. For 29 rewarding and compassionate years she cared for patients, first at the bedside, and then as an administrative supervisor, managing nursing operations for the entire hospital.

After retiring from an impact-filled career, Armetta wasn’t done giving back. For the past 32 years, Armetta has been a loyal donor to Montage Health Foundation, making monthly gifts to support heart and cancer care — health conditions her husband of 62 years battled before his passing in 2016.

Armetta’s amazing healthcare legacy also inspired her family. Her daughter, Pam Peete, started as a candy striper and then began her nursing career at

Community Hospital. Fast forward to today, Armetta’s granddaughter Jasmine Peete is now a scholar in Montage Health Foundation’s Minorities in Medicine program, where she is gaining hands-on experience and mentorship to pursue a career in healthcare. Jasmine aspires to one day become a doctor and follow in her mom and grandmother’s footsteps.

As a grandmother, mother, retired nurse, and Montage Health Foundation donor, Armetta Hamilton continues to inspire others and make a meaningful difference to strengthen healthcare for our community.

Watch video to hear more about Armetta’s inspiring healthcare legacy.

I give because it’s the right thing to do. I want to help others in any way I can.

Armetta Hamilton

29-year nursing career to Montage Health Foundation

with Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula

32 years of philanthropic giving building careers through Montage Health 3 generations of healthcare professionals

Advancing clinical innovation: Using robots to enhance human-to-human care

deliveries 20,000 hours returned to care providers 11,157

Thanks to your support, in March 2023 Montage Health Foundation provided a grant to bring two new members to the Community Hospital team — a pair of robots named Moxi.

The robots are designed to do routine but timeconsuming tasks, like picking up and delivering supplies, medication, and small equipment. The goal is to give clinical staff, especially nurses, more time to focus on their patients.

Diligent Robotics Inc., maker of Moxi, estimates as much as one-third of a nurse’s time is spent on nonpatient-facing work. Moxi was created to change that, working as a “co-bot,” collaborating with staff, not replacing them. Community Hospital was the first hospital in Northern or Central California and the third in California to add Moxi robots.

Enhancing the patient experience: Supporting patients throughout their cancer journeys

Staff and volunteers welcomed over 450 cancer survivors and their families to Community Hospital’s 2023 Cancer Survivor’s Day event, sponsored by Montage Health Foundation.

Thanks to the generosity and compassion of donors like you, Community Hospital’s Comprehensive Cancer Center is able to offer support programs to patients and their families at no cost. One example is the Cancer Wellness® Support Group, which brings patients together with others who have been or are going through cancer treatment. Center experts provide valuable information to help patients navigate care, manage physical and emotional symptoms, and uplift spirits.

In 2023, more than 500 community members benefitted from free cancer support groups and survivorship programs — made possible with your support.

In addition, a partnership between the American Cancer Society and Montage Health Foundation helped more than 100 cancer patients experiencing financial hardship receive gas, ride-share, or hotel gift cards to travel to critical medical appointments.

Investing in workforce excellence:

Building professional pathways for nurses

Thanks to investments from donors like you, the Helen Baszucki Center for Nursing Excellence has partnered with the Monterey Peninsula College (MPC) Maurine Church Coburn School of Nursing to significantly increase enrollment as well as offer mentorship, scholarships, hands-on work experience, and a residency program for students and recent graduates — many of whom choose to stay and work in Monterey County.

In 2023, Montage Health Foundation was honored to receive a $1 million gift from the Ralph Knox Foundation to support the Center. This significant gift provides scholarships for MPC nursing students who are single parents or facing financial difficulties, helping them pay for tuition, academic supplies, rent, utilities, and household expenses. The endowment fund launched in November 2023 and the first 29 students were awarded scholarships .

I am a single mother and a firstgeneration college student. Receiving this scholarship has helped me in so many ways, not only financially but also emotionally. I know that without it I probably wouldn’t be where I am today. The scholarship has helped me pay for my nursing school expenses as well as food and necessities for my daughter and me. I am beyond grateful for this scholarship; it is a true blessing.

Joanna Loera Sanchez, MPC nursing student and scholarship recipient

Improving community health: Inspiring

healthy habits for Monterey County youth

In the 2022 Monterey County Community Health Needs Assessment, diabetes was identified as the top health issues facing our community. Over half of Monterey County residents have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, which is well above the national average.

That’s why in 2023, Montage Health Foundation and Aspire Health partnered to launch Healthy Youth Field Day. With your support, more than 120 students came together from across Monterey County to learn about healthy lifestyle habits at Cardinale Stadium, home of the Monterey Bay Football Club (Monterey Bay FC). This fun day of active learning focused on healthy nutrition and physical activity through an easy-to-remember 5210 framework.

Thanks to grant funding from Montage Health Foundation, schools who attended the event also participate in our Kids Eat Right program or Aspire Health’s Don’t Feed the Diabetes curriculum to build healthy habits year-round.

Watch video to see your support in action.

Students gathered with Monterey Bay Football Club players and the Aspire Health Don’t Feed the Diabetes “Beast” mascot to learn healthy habits.

Addressing emerging needs: Improving

mental health for youth and families

In December 2023, Montage Health opened the doors to its Ohana campus, a 55,600-square-foot facility dedicated to changing the trajectory of mental health among our youth. This initiative is fully funded by Montage Health Foundation thanks to investments by donors like you.

While Ohana has provided more than 50,000 patient appointments to date, demand for care continues to grow. To begin

supporting youth and families from the first moment they reach out to Ohana, Monterey Peninsula Foundation provided a grant in 2023 to Montage Health Foundation to help launch the Family Wellness Program. The goal is to provide families with tools they can use, before treatment begins, to help kids start their path to wellness. All families receive a backpack with specially selected contents to support specific mental wellness needs for their child.

Ohana backpacks provide support tools for families seeking mental health care.

Montage Health Foundation Healthcare Careers Academy volunteer, Grace W., heads to her next assignement at the hospital labratory.

Brightening days of patients, visitors, and staff

From the Emergency department to the Visitor Services Desk to Comforts Gift Shop and beyond, you can always count on Montage Health Foundation Auxiliary volunteers to provide warm smiles and compassionate support. The Auxiliary has played a key role in enhancing the patient, visitor, and staff experience at Community Hospital since 1965.

A big change you may have noticed in 2023 involved the Auxiliary uniform. After decades of wearing the iconic red uniform, volunteers transitioned to a beautiful blue. While their uniforms changed, their kindness and dedicated service remain the same.

Supporting self-care for patients during cancer treatment

Recognizing that healing extends beyond clinical care, in 2023 the Montage Health Foundation partnered with Lipstick Angels, a national nonprofit known for its unique approach to enhancing the spirits of patients during their cancer journey.

Through this new program, Montage Health Foundation volunteers provide beauty and wellness services to people undergoing cancer treatment. The organization understands the transformative power of self-care and believes that a positive selfimage can significantly impact a patient’s mental and emotional well-being. By offering skincare, hand massage, makeup application, and other wellness services in our Comprehensive Cancer Center, foundation volunteers aim to empower patients, helping them feel beautiful and confident during a challenging time.

Thank you for pampering me during this difficult time. You took my mind off my cancer battle and made me feel beautiful.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for making my day a happy one.

Comprehensive Cancer Center patient

A patient receives a hand massage and facial from a Lipstick Angels volunteer during her cancer treatment.

Providing dignity and compassion at the end of life

In 2023 Montage Health Foundation grew the Hospice Volunteer Program to support more patients, families, and caregivers. Thanks to a grant from Hospice Giving Foundation, the foundation hired a Volunteer Service Coordinator to recruit, train, and coordinate hospice care, supportive and palliative care, and spiritual care volunteers.

One unique volunteer service that is making a difference for hospice patients and families is the Veteran Recognition program. For the past four years, volunteer and Air Force

veteran Randele Kanouse has honored Hospice of the Central Coast patients who are veterans with ceremonies that recognize these patients’ service, sacrifices, and bravery. The ceremonies memorialize their legacy through storytelling about their service, often including details that family and friends never knew.

Kanouse has performed more than 180 of these ceremonies for hospice patients who are veterans, and each one is as unique and meaningful as the patient.

Hospice volunteer Randele Kanouse honored local veteran Janet Parks for her service during World War II, surrounded by family and loved ones.

Growing the next generation of healthcare professionals

The Montage Health Foundation Minorities in Medicine program provides underrepresented or low-income aspiring medical professionals in Monterey County with mentorship and hands-on clinical experience to assist in the complex process of applying to healthcare programs like medical school. The program is free to participants, who also receive access to local networking opportunities, medical conferences, scrubs and uniforms, staff support, stipends, and scholarships — making expensive medical career paths more accessible.

This investment in the next generation of local medical professionals supports Monterey County residents who have limited resources and exposure to the medical field, empowering them to pursue careers in healthcare that might have otherwise felt unattainable.

Everybody has the potential to be a medical professional with the right support, guidance, and mentorship.

Dr. Juan Magaña, Minorities in Medicine founder and hospitalist at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula

While volunteering with Montage Health Foundation, local Prunedale resident Fernando Flores Leon learned about the program. With aspirations to one day become a doctor, Fernando applied for and was accepted to the 2022-23 Minorities in Medicine cohort along with 19 other scholars. During the 10-month program, he gained 134 hours of clinical shadowing experience with Community Hospital doctors, mentorship, guidance, and letters of recommendation for his medical school applications.

Thanks to Fernando’s hard work and dedication, in 2023 he was accepted to the medical school program at the prestigious Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. There, he continues his pursuit to become a doctor, and hopes to one day return to Montage Health to serve his local community.

Bringing smiles with wagging tails

In 2023, the Montage Health Foundation Therapy Dog Program celebrated 23 years of service for patients, visitors, and staff at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. Research shows that the presence of therapy dogs in a hospital or skilled nursing facility can benefit patients and staff in a variety of ways, including lowering blood pressure, reducing anxiety, and creating moments of joy or peace in an otherwise stressful time — and we couldn’t agree more. Thank you to our therapy dogs and their human handlers for their heartwarming service.

Offering spiritual comfort and support

Chaplain volunteers are clergy members or spiritual care providers who share their compassion, support, and sensitivity with patients and their families during a hospital stay.

Meet Rougeau McWhorter, a dedicated chaplain volunteer who has been serving in the Community Hospital Spiritual Care Services department for more than 33 years, beginning his service as one of our founding chaplain volunteers in 1991.

One of his favorite aspects of being a volunteer chaplain is providing comfort and solace to patients who may not have regular visitors or who are feeling lonely. With his compassionate heart and years of experience, Chaplain McWhorter has touched many lives through his ministry.

Supporting the healing environment

Dora Lisa Rosenbaum (American, born Guatemala, 1979. Living and working in Carmel Valley.), Holding Onward, 2023. Digital print on vinyl, felt.

Commission made possible by the Maurine Church Coburn Endowment Fund, 2023. © Dora Lisa Rosenbaum

Designed for healing: The Art Program

Montage Health was founded on a progressive belief in the integrated benefits of medicine, nature, and art. Today, the Art and Community Music Programs reside within Montage Health Foundation thanks to a philanthropic endowment from the late Maurine Church Coburn and ongoing contributions from community members who support the role of art and music in creating a healing environment in healthcare spaces.

In 2023, the Art Program curated a one-of-a-kind, youth-focused collection within the walls of the new campus of Ohana, Montage Health’s innovative mental health program for young people. The captivating collection includes more than 200 works by 118 artists, featuring poems, large-scale murals, unique mounted pieces such as printed skateboard decks, and an art lending library.

When youth in residential care at Ohana go through their orientation, they will be able to select artwork from the lending library to hang in their private bedrooms to make it feel more like their “own space”.

The art lending library was a collaboration with the Weston Collective, a local nonprofit organization supporting black-and-white film photography in Monterey County schools. Montage Health Foundation partnered with the Weston Collective to host a student photography competition, in which 34 local student photographs were selected to be part of the art lending library in Ohana’s residential program.

Here are a few of the photographs youth in residential care will be able to select for their private bedrooms.

Alice Romano (Monterey County student artist), Untitled, 2022. Digital image. Purchase made possible by the Maurine Church Coburn Endowment Fund, 2022. © Alice Romano

Alice Romano (Monterey County student artist), Untitled, 2022. Digital image. Purchase made possible by the Maurine Church Coburn Endowment Fund, 2022. © Alice Romano

Dylan Eden (Monterey County student artist), Halo, 2022. Digital image. Purchase made possible by the Maurine Church Coburn Endowment Fund, 2022.

© Dylan Eden

State-of-the-art hybrid operating room opened for patient care in early 2024.

for patient care in 2024.

Building a brighter future together

Your generosity ensures we continue to build a healthier, brighter future. We can’t wait to see what we accomplish together this year.

Here are just a few ways gifts to Montage Health Foundation continue to improve care in 2024:

• Expanding outpatient Supportive and Palliative Care services to improve quality of life for more patients, families, and caregivers

• Launching an advanced neurosurgery program, in partnership with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)

• Renovating the Comprehensive Cancer Center to enhance and expand care for patients

• Opening Ohana’s Residential Unit to care for youth round-the-clock in a peaceful, healing environment

• Opening state-of-the-art hybrid operating rooms for heart, vascular, and other care

Ohana’s residential unit opens

Committed to the cause

Celebrating YOU: 2023 donors and volunteers

We hope you enjoyed reading some of the countless stories about the incredible impacts your generosity made possible in 2023. We are incredibly grateful for your dedication to the well-being of others. Your commitment to community health inspires us to strive to do even more in 2024. It is through your partnership that we continue to make a tangible difference in the lives of those we serve.

With heartfelt gratitude, we extend our sincerest THANK YOU for your generosity and unwavering support.

View the full list of your fellow 2023 donor and volunteer champions.

Montage Health Foundation Board of Trustees

Ryan Edwards, Chair

Kevin Mahoney, Vice Chair

Kimberley Negri, Secretary

Paul Baszucki

Bill Doolittle

Nick Fantl

Craig Geiler, MD

Rebecca Heiser

Paul Hoffman

Kiran Kamath

Zach Koontz, MD

Clay Larson

Sharon Meresman

Joan O’Reilly

Nanci Perocchi

Stefanie Skinner

Craig Stauffer, MD

Joanne Storkan

Clark Struve

Kathryn Swanson, MD

Scott Clegg, ex-officio

Matt Morgan, ex-officio

Steven Packer, MD, ex-officio

Bill Warner, ex-officio

Your ongoing support is vital to continue making a meaningful difference for patients and elevating healthcare for our entire community. We hope you will continue to make a profound impact and advance critical health programs in our community through your partnership with the Montage Health Foundation.

www.montagehealth.org/donate

Give by mail Montage Health Foundation

40 Ryan Court, Suite 200 Monterey, CA 93940

Give by phone

To speak with a philanthropy team member about making a donation, please call (831) 658-3630.

opportunities

www.montagehealth.org/volunteer

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2023 Impact Report