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The Medical Center
The University of California San Francisco Medical Center is
consistently one of the 10 best hospitals in the country and is the only UC campus dedicated solely to graduate and professional
study in the health sciences. UCSF faculty, researchers, and house
staff, along with UCSF Medical Center personnel strive to provide the highest quality general and specialty care for patients
who come for treatment from all over the world. The mission of UCSF Medical Center (Caring,
Healing, Teaching and Discovering) is to be the best provider of health care; the best place to work; and to be the best environment
for teaching and research. The UCSF Medical Center Auxiliary supports this mission and vision.
The New Auxiliary The UCSF Medical Center Auxiliary held their inaugural membership meeting on January 20th,
2010. It was truly a milestone in the long history of the two separate auxiliaries of Mount Zion and Parnassus.
After many months of planning, the organization is now one new entity dedicated to
serving the entire UCSF Medical Center community. The evening started with a social hour for old and new
members to get acquainted. The weather was a bit inclement which prevented some members from being there,
but did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of those in attendance. President, Catherine Wittenberg, opened the business
meeting by introducing the members of the Executive Steering Committee and recognizing them for their hard work in bringing
this endeavor to fruition. Both Mark Laret, CEO and Ken Jones, CFO of UCSF Medical Center spoke briefly,
recognizing the Auxiliary’s important mission and its profound impact on patients and families of UCSF.
Roxanne Fernandez, Director of the Children’s Hospital capped off the evening with a presentation on the new
Women’s, Children’s and Cancer Hospital to be built at Mission Bay. Now that the organizational structure is
in place for the Auxiliary, the Board plans to focus on getting the necessary committees in place to promote the work of the
Auxiliary, so stay tuned for the next phase. In the meantime, there are things that you can do immediately
to support the Auxiliary. If you have not already signed up for eScrip, please do so by going to www.escrip.com and registering. On this web site is a flyer for car donations that benefit
the Auxiliary. Please print it out and post at your worksite or any place you think might be suitable.
The more visibility we have, the more donations we receive. Lastly, keep up on the Auxiliary’s
activities by checking in periodically at www.ucsfauxiliary.org.
Grants Funds to operate the Medical Center are obtained mainly from patient revenue.
Increasingly limited reimbursements and managed care have continued to pressure the health care providers to do more
with less. Therefore, the Auxiliary’s goal to raise funds for patient’s needs and comforts
is even more important. The
Auxiliary, with the help of donors and friends, through a program called Special Wishes, provides items
and services that physicians and staff identify to help alleviate stress and discomfort that patients experience due to their
illnesses and hospitalizations. These items and services truly make a positive difference. Recent grants that the Auxiliary has funded include teddy bears for children undergoing surgery, televisions,
VCR’s and DVD players, art for hallways and patient rooms, funding for an end-of-life program (Comfort Care), waiting
room renovations, sleep chairs for families/visitors, toys, and a fund to assist families who have lost a child or loved one. All
wishes are reviewed and approved by the Auxiliary Board of Directors and
Medical Center Administration. However, we always receive more wishes than we can fill, and we rely on
the support of friends to meet these needs. Individuals, corporations and foundations may help by contributing to the Friends
annual giving, by making a memorial or donation in honor of a friend or significant occasion, or by contributing to the Grants
program. 100% of donations to this campaign will go towards helping patients and their families.
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