2007 President's Report to Leadership and Supporters

Laura Rehrmann
FAHP, President
Group Health Foundation

The coming year will mark the 25th anniversary of the Group Health Community Foundation. The Foundation amplifies Group Health's work to provide excellent patient care, nationally recognized cutting-edge research and a commitment to serve the most vulnerable members of our community.

Group Health's strength comes from vibrant relationships with members, staff, volunteers and community partners. The Foundation builds and nurtures these relationships in a way that no other part of Group Health can. We create opportunities for those already invested in Group Health to step up and become donors — a very personal and generous way to contribute to everything Group Health stands for and achieves.

Our donors believe in Group Health. They believe that we provide the best patient care and they believe that our model of coordinated care presents a solution to one of the most profound challenges of our century. Their dollars follow their beliefs. There is no stronger endorsement. Every year we welcome more donors and we acknowledge more gifts and larger investments in our mission.

This report provides an overview of the Foundation's work in 2007. As we work to connect our donors with meaningful ways to invest in the work of Group Health, we also keep our sights on furthering Group Health's strategic objectives in four key areas:

• Enhancing patient care
• Creating opportunities for investment in Group Health
• Sharing the Group Health story
• Creating better health in our communities

We are grateful and proud of the support we received in 2007. We look forward to serving our patients, staff, donors, volunteers and communities in 2008.

Enhancing Patient Care

The focus of the Foundation's strategic planning work in 2007 was to align with Group Health's strategic vision. This means finding new ways to support patient care and supporting innovative efforts to deliver better care at a lower cost.

Better care at a lower cost

The Partnership for Innovation is a new initiative set to launch in 2008. It was developed in collaboration with the Foundation, the Center for Health Studies and the Group Health care delivery system. The partners will identify tools and processes that will deliver better patient care at lower cost. The Foundation's goal is to direct $300,000 to the Partnership for Innovation in 2008 and hopefully, more in the future as new donors invest in the initiative.

Creating Opportunities to Invest in the Values of Group Health

Vibrant relationships set us apart as a leading provider of care. People believe in Group Health because of our mission and values. Through philanthropy, the Foundation creates opportunities for donors to invest in these values and a model that "serves the greatest number" with affordable, excellent care.

Listening to our donors

As part of the Foundation's strategic planning process in 2007, we conducted more than 60 interviews with key donors and community leaders. We engaged these individuals in direct conversations about the Foundation's vision and goals. These interviews helped us identify three areas that donors see as the most inspiring opportunities for investment — programs and services that enhance patient care, patient health education and uncompensated care for Group Health members in need. Funding opportunities within these areas will be our philanthropic focus for the future.

Extraordinary gifts build fundraising momentum

Donors who step up to make major gifts often do so to recognize their long-term affiliation with Group Health. In 2007 we received gifts from major donors who have been committed to our mission for as many as six decades.

• Gene and Marilyn Lux — The Lux's relationship with Group Health began in 1947 with Gene's father Harry, who was a charter member and founder of the Group Health Credit Union. Gene served as a trustee and Senior Caucus leader. To recognize the Lux family's 60-year commitment to Group Health, Gene and Marilyn established an annuity and the Harry and Anna Lux Endowed Fund with a gift of real estate valued at more than $170,000.
• Dr. Gerald and Virginia Sparling — Jerry Sparling, MD, joined Group Health in 1961 as the second radiologist ever hired. He retired in 1996 after 35 years of service. In 2007, Jerry and his wife Virginia fulfilled their wish to provide long-term support for Group Health radiology with a major gift of $30,000 to support professional development programs for radiology staff.
• Margery Sayre — Margery is a 35-year enrollee and former Senior Caucus chair in Olympia. In 2001 she established the Margery Sayre Endowed Fund to benefit Group Health seniors at the Olympia Medical Center. This year Margery made gifts totaling more than $100,000 directed to her endowed fund and other senior programs.

The Gift of Health Gala

The Gala is Group Health's signature fundraiser. On Sept. 29, 520 people gathered in the Seattle Sheraton to support Group Health's programs to improve the health of children and teens. The Gala set a new fundraising record this year-our generous donors contributed more than $550,000.

Sharing the Group Health Story

Closing the coverage gap for kids

In 2006, Group Health made a $1 million gift to the Foundation to help the 73,000 uninsured kids in our state get coverage. In September, Scott Armstrong was joined in Spokane by children's advocates from across Washington state to announce eight Foundation grants totaling $1 million aimed at closing the coverage gap. More than 40 community leaders and members of the media were present for the announcement and panel discussion. The event raised statewide visibility for the issue and showcased Group Health's commitment to closing the coverage gap.

Demonstrating our medical leadership

Three years ago Group Health patient Michael Smith was diagnosed with a rare and often misdiagnosed condition that strikes the abdominal cavity. Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) is a condition involving a tumor that spreads throughout the abdomen and can be deadly. Only 300 Americans are diagnosed with this rare disease nationwide. With Group Health doctors overseeing his care every step of the way, Michael made a full recovery.

In gratitude to his medical team, led by Dr. Thomas Ylvisaker, Michael and his wife Sandy made a gift to the Foundation to raise awareness and educate the medical community about PMP. The Smith's gift funded a presentation led by the leading national expert on PMP helping to train more than 150 doctors in the diagnosis and treatment of this complex disease.

Creating Better Health in Our Communities

The Foundation supports community-based programs that promote healthier lives for children and teens.

Improving oral health

• Group Health's Center for Health Studies received a grant to support the Oral Health in Well Child Care pilot program at six Group Health clinics. The grant will explore the viability of integrating an oral health component into well-child visits.
• University of Washington Department of Pediatric Dentistry will pilot a project providing dental care for vulnerable, at-risk children at Seattle's Childhaven on Capitol Hill.
• Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center will provide basic and preventive dental care to more than 2,000 low-income children. The grant will also fund a pilot to reduce the risk of premature birth for 240 infants by treating cases of advanced periodontal disease in pregnant women.

Increasing access to care

• Choice Regional Health network will expand its outreach to enroll the hard-to-reach 6 percent of uninsured, low-income children and their families in South Puget Sound.
• Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department's Access to Care Outreach Project will work with local schools to help approximately 1,800 uninsured children gain access to care.

Promoting healthy lifestyles for kids

• Bike Works will enhance and expand their Youth Ventures Riding Program, which integrates riding, training, and healthy choices into the lives of children and teens.
• YMCA of Snohomish County will expand their innovative Strong Kids Program to all five YMCA branches in Snohomish County. Strong Kids helps overweight youth find healthy, positive and permanent solutions to the difficult challenges of weight control.

School-based health centers

Foundation donors support Group Health's four school-based health centers. Group Health operates four health centers in Seattle-area schools, each staffed by a nurse practitioner, mental health counselor, health educator, and clinic coordinator. These school-based health centers play an essential role in providing primary care and mental-health counseling to young people who often avoid doctors for reasons of cost, accessibility, or fear.

School-based health centers meet the needs of young people by addressing their health issues in a familiar setting that does not require them to miss school to be seen. Follow-up can be assured as teens no longer need to rely on their parents to shuttle them to and from appointments. Last year, Group Health provided care to over 2,000 students in schools, many of whom would not have received care otherwise.

Highlighting Group Health's Role as a Community Leader

The Foundation led the effort to nominate Group Health for Philanthropic Corporation of the Year for 2007. The statewide award, sponsored by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, recognizes organizations and individuals with an outstanding dedication to philanthropy. The Foundation gathered nominations from Group Health's most committed community partners including King County Executive Ron Sims, Children's Hospital, The Boeing Corporation, Washington Dental Service, Cascade Bicycle Club, United Way of King County, and The Pacific Science Center.

At a special awards ceremony to mark National Philanthropy Day on Nov. 16, 2007, Scott Armstrong accepted the Philanthropic Corporation of the Year award in front of 1,200 community leaders from across the state.

Read the article Lifelong Health for All (PDF) from the November 2007 issue of Seattle Metropolitan Magazine or watch a video to find out more about our philanthropic work.