St. John's Health Receives $4.2 million in Community Philanthropy for Vital Initiatives

Community generosity through Annual Giving to the St. John's Health Foundation (SJHF) recently enabled the transfer of $4.2 million in philanthropic support to St. John's Health (SJH). “We’re very grateful for this incredible level of support that helps us meet the priorities of the 2024 Strategic Plan,” said SJH CEO Jeff Sollis. “This support also helps us maintain our independence during a time when hospital consolidation is driving community healthcare from rural areas such as Teton County.”

The Foundation transfer fully funded the acquisition and installation of a new CT Scanner at the hospital and helped support initiatives to upgrade the St. John's Health Surgical Suites and construct SJH workforce rental housing units.

New CT Scanner
As the depth and breadth of medical specialties offered at SJH expands, the demand for diagnostic imaging grows too. With the acquisition of the new scanner, SJH now has two CTs to serve patients from the emergency department as well as SJH’s numerous outpatient clinics, including primary care, specialty physician care, and oncology. The acquisition also ensures backup for times when one of the CTs is down for maintenance, representing a major enhancement to reliable access to important diagnostic testing. CT is one of the hospital’s most utilized diagnostic imaging exams, used by clinical radiologists and the care team to investigate internal bleeding, check for internal injuries or problems, and help diagnose tumors.

Surgical Suite Upgrades
With the addition of new surgeons to the SJH care teams, including breast surgeon Hannah Caulfield, MD and trauma orthopedist Jason Provus, MD, the St. John’s Health surgical suites play a bigger part in community health than ever before. Accordingly, it’s vital that the operating rooms be outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment and technology to best serve the surgeon specialists and their patients. With support from donors to St. John’s Health Foundation, upgrades are underway in four key areas: Surgical Imaging System, Surgical Instrumentation, Surgical Booms, and the Operating Room Lighting System. The contribution from SJHF was made possible through a gift from the Friedman Family Foundation.

Workforce Housing: King & Karns Project
As the latest addition to the SJH workforce housing portfolio, 15 new rental units at the new King & Karns project will open in Fall 2024. Ten 2-bedroom and five studio units will feature onsite parking and storage. Consistent with the SJH employee housing rental program, the units will be offered to SJH team members at rates that are more affordable than the vast majority of what is available through the Teton County rental market.

“The Foundation is thrilled to coordinate this transfer of funds that will have direct and positive impacts on our community health and wellbeing,” said Anna Olson, President St John’s Health Foundation. “To be able to use $4.2 million of funds raised in 2023 in this meaningful and immediate way to support our hospital, in addition to the over $2 million we also provided for patient support, staff support, and smaller capital needs, reflects a benchmark year for donor giving, outside of a specific campaign. I am grateful to our Foundation Board Members for their contribution and oversight to encourage strong annual donations and to our amazing donors who see the need and act, particularly as we face important capital needs in the future,” Olson added.

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Media Contact: Karen Connelly, Chief Communications Officer, kconnelly@stjohns.health