Donation provides mobile interpreters, wheelchairs

Memorial Hospital Foundation Director Tiffany Marshall and Jeremy Brown, CEO of the Kim and Jody Brown Foundation, stand next a mobile interpreter and one of MHSC's new wheelchairs.

Kim and Jody Brown Foundation donates $10,000

The Memorial Hospital Foundation recently purchased four mobile interpreters and a few new wheelchairs thanks to a generous $10,000 donation from the Kim and Jody Brown Foundation.

“We are so thankful to the Kim and Jody Brown Family Foundation for thinking of us and supporting our community. They have filled a small but extremely important need for our hospital in funding mobile interpreters and wheelchairs,” said Tiffany Marshall, Executive Director of the Memorial Hospital Foundation.

The Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County has an interpreter on staff, as well as two mobile interpreters that have predominantly been used in the Emergency Department. Over the past year, the hospital has seen an increased volume of patients and families needing interpretation assistance throughout various departments and clinics, resulting in the need for additional mobile interpreters for when the staff interpreter is unavailable.

“It’s a need that we’ve seen increase a lot over this past year and we are grateful to both Foundations for helping meet that need for our patient and family’s experience,” said Director of Patient Financial Services Ron Cheese.

Another need the hospital has currently been working on is upgrading and replacing outdated wheelchairs with newer, patient friendly wheelchairs. “Our wheelchairs are very outdated and are not the best when thinking of our patients. Many times, they are missing pieces or our patients struggle to get in and out of them,” said Director of Education Patty O’Lexey.

The new wheelchairs the hospital has begun upgrading include safety brakes, flexible but non-removable foot and arm rests, and a place for patients to store their belongings. The hospital has currently upgraded 16 wheelchairs, but has approximately 50 more to go. “We upgraded the wheelchairs in the Emergency Room, but they’ve become so popular that other departments like to come and borrow them. We’d love to get every wheelchair in our hospital upgraded,” O’Lexey said.

“Supporting the community is important to us and we want to help where we can to ensure that our county hospital has what it needs to take care of the patients,” said Jeremy Brown, CEO of the Kim and Jody Brown Foundation.

With the $10,000 donation from the Kim and Jody Brown Foundation, the Memorial Hospital Foundation was able to purchase four more mobile interpreters, as well as two new wheelchairs. “The wheelchairs are being replaced in small phases, but we are getting there. We will also be highlighting them during our Virtual Red Tie Gala on Feb. 5 for our guests to sponsor or contribute to,” Marshall said.

For more information on making a donation to the Memorial Hospital Foundation, or to purchase tickets for the 8^th Annual Red Tie Gala, visit www.MHSCFoundation.com or email Tiffany Marshall at tmarshall@sweetwatermemorial.com