FALL 2020

As the COVID-19 pandemic has unfolded, hospitals across the nation—including SMH—have had to adapt to treat patients and protect frontline healthcare workers. We are so proud to be part of a community that stepped forward during the pandemic, helping grant over $2 million to help the hospital combat COVID-19. Throughout the pandemic, the Healthcare Foundation has worked closely with SMH to identify and help support the areas of greatest need.

Thanks to these grants, SMH has been able to:

• Purchase additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), including facemasks and disposable gowns for frontline staff
• Buy additional testing equipment to expand the capabilities of the SMH Lab, and reduce the amount of time needed to get COVID-19 test results
• Provide more ventilators to support critically-ill patients who require ventilation during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
• Purchase three new ultraviolet light disinfection robots to help with infection control protocols. These were distributed to the main campus, the Health Care Center at Clark Road and the North Port ER
• Upgrade the hospital’s in-house testing capability with the purchase of the BioFire FilmArray Torch – a system that quickly delivers accurate results for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases
• Purchase equipment that delivers high-flow oxygen to patients who are in respiratory distress
• Provide audio/video telemedicine communication carts, which enable doctors to assess COVID-19 patients who are in isolation
• Assist SMH employees who have been financially impacted by the pandemic
• Provide funding that supports SMH participation in four clinical trials including testing of the antiviral drug remedesivir and evaluating the use of convalescent plasma donated by people who have recovered from COVID-19

We are grateful to all of our donors for allowing us to quickly respond to these critical needs at SMH.