A Message From Elizabeth Hickman
Dear Friends,
As we pass the two-year mark of the pandemic’s onset, we continue to be moved by the dedication and compassion displayed by healthcare workers. Around the world, they have faced unparalleled challenges. Those still working in healthcare have suffered distress and sustained trauma. Coupled with an already strained healthcare system, caregivers have reached a crisis point.
This is why the work of the Schwartz Center is more important now than ever.
Thanks to support from our donors, we were able to enhance our existing programs and training, including Virtual Schwartz Rounds®, Stress First Aid, the COVID-19 Resource Page, Compassion in Action Webinar Series, and the Compassion in Action Healthcare Conference.
Over the past year, we have seen healthcare leaders prioritize the mental health and well-being of the healthcare workforce like never before, enabling us to educate, train and support more caregivers so that they can provide the compassionate care all patients and families deserve.
The Schwartz Center also joined the All In: WellBeing First for Healthcare initiative as a founding collaborator. Led by #FirstRespondersFirst and the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation, in collaboration with leading healthcare organizations, including the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the initiative amplifies the need for healthcare organizations to prioritize the well-being of their workforce.
As we look to the future, we know that we have to change the system in order for caregivers to thrive and provide the best possible care to patients and families. That’s why we’ve launched the Healing Healthcare Initiative (HHI). This initiative provides leaders with the resources, support and a roadmap for building an integrated trauma- and resilience-informed organizational culture. We’re excited to share more about how organizations can join HHI in the coming months.
We are deeply grateful to our healthcare member community for their resilience and commitment to delivering compassionate care in the face of this crisis, and to our loyal donors for enabling us to provide these urgently needed resources.
Thank you for joining us in our vision to create a world where all who seek and provide care experience compassion. Our work has never been more important, and the impact of your support has never been more meaningful.
Elizabeth Hickman, Interim CEO & COO
OUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE
The Healing Healthcare Initiative
Our Healing Healthcare Initiative (HHI) provides leaders of healthcare organizations with guidance and support to ensure the care they offer is relationship-based, compassionate, safe and effective. It will give healthcare leaders the cohesive framework and practical resources they need to build a culture of resilience and inclusion at their organizations. It will empower leaders to recognize, remedy and prevent psychological distress and stress-related injuries among their staff. And it offers our leaders the support they need themselves.
Our Impact
29,640+ caregivers, representing 50 states and 39 countries, viewed our COVID Compassion in Action Webinar Series.
Underscoring the global spread of the pandemic, our programs and resources were utilized by caregivers across the country and around the world.
500+ sites across the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand are Schwartz Center members, with another 200+ sites running our Schwartz Rounds program through our partner in the U.K. and Ireland.
90% of caregivers who attended multiple Schwartz Rounds reported better communication with their co-workers.
86% of caregivers who attended multiple Schwartz Rounds reported feeling more compassionate toward patients and families.
Healthcare Organizations We Support
Our vision is a world where all who seek and provide healthcare experience compassion.
NATIONAL COMPASSIONATE CAREGIVERS OF THE YEAR
The National Compassionate Caregivers of the Year® (NCCY) Award recognizes extraordinary healthcare professionals from across the country who embody the characteristics of compassionate care and whose professional achievements have helped to create healing healthcare environments for patients, families, colleagues, and communities. To learn more, visit our NCCY page.
32,840+ caregivers accessed our COVID resources page
This page shares resources and information to help caregivers and healthcare leaders manage the stress and anxiety they are experiencing.
One popular resource was our special webinar series featuring leading practitioners and researchers. You are invited to watch the recorded webinars and sign up for upcoming sessions.
SUPPORTING CAREGIVERS EVERYWHERE
The Marjorie Stanzler Financial Aid Fund
Since the pandemic began, we have received an outpouring of calls from hospitals and other healthcare organizations who have asked for our help in supporting the mental and emotional well-being of their staff. To expand our reach, we offer program and membership fee waivers to qualifying organizations. The Marjorie Stanzler Financial Aid Fund has enabled us to grant membership to healthcare organizations in marginalized and underserved communities, including safety net hospitals, Indian Health Services sites, Veterans Affairs hospitals and more.
The Marjorie Stanzler Financial Aid Fund
Since the pandemic began, we have received an outpouring of calls from hospitals and other healthcare organizations who have asked for our help in supporting the mental and emotional well-being of their staff. To expand our reach, we offer program and membership fee waivers to qualifying organizations. The Marjorie Stanzler Financial Aid Fund has enabled us to grant membership to healthcare organizations in marginalized and underserved communities, including safety net hospitals, Indian Health Services sites, Veterans Affairs hospitals and more.
The fund was established in 2015 upon Marjorie’s retirement from the Schwartz Center by the staff to honor her 18 years of love and dedication to its mission of ensuring that compassion remains at the heart of healthcare.
“This fund is near and dear to my heart because it provides a path for organizations who otherwise could not afford the Schwartz Center’s evidence-based training programs to support their workforce,” said Marjorie. “After 18 years as a staff member, and more as a supporter, I’m honored to champion this effort to expand the reach of the Schwartz Center, especially to underserved communities.”
One recipient of the Marjorie Stanzler Financial Aid Fund is the Gallup Indian Medical Center. More than 48,000 people trust Gallup for their care each year.
“Actively tending to our well-being as healthcare workers has never been more important,” said a caregiver at Gallup. “We can no longer be passive witnesses to the trauma we see, but rather we need to make time to care for ourselves so that we can continue to care for others.” As an organization founded to advance compassion, the Schwartz Center affirms our commitment to realizing a more just, equitable and compassionate healthcare system through our programs. Partnering with organizations like Indian Health Services is a pillar of our commitment to value each other’s full humanity.
If you’d like to support the Stanzler Financial Aid Fund, gifts of all sizes are welcome and encouraged as we focus on our goal of raising $100,000 in 2022. Please donate now.
The virtual conference offered 30+ sessions featuring workshops and panel presentations on how to manage the challenges, experiences and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients, healthcare workers, leaders and our healthcare system, as well as content aligned with our original conference themes. Planning is already underway for our 2022 Virtual Conference, and we hope you will join us for an inspiring, informative, and interactive experience!
500+ attendees joined our Virtual Compassion in Action Healthcare Conference
94% of the attendees said the conference updated their knowledge and skills
88% of the attendees believe that the conference will enable them to deliver better care that will improve patient health outcomes
Financial Highlights
Philanthropy and earned revenue evenly contribute to the Schwartz Center.
During Fiscal Year 2021, 72% of all spending was directed to mission-specific programming. Fundraising and administrative costs represent the remainder. Our program investments for Fiscal Year 2021 resulted in income from operations of $0.9M.
Looking Ahead
Looking to the future, we remain committed to supporting caregivers during and in the aftermath of this life-altering pandemic and to advancing equity in healthcare. We will continue to expand our reach to more caregivers and their patients. Our work has never been more important, and the impact of your support has never been more meaningful.
Thank you for joining us in this mission to put compassion at the heart of healthcare.