In the fourth quarter of 2021, thanks to the community’s support, Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation granted your not-for-profit hospitals nearly $1 million in support of seven programs and two capital projects. Please refer to the following descriptions highlighting key grants supported in the fourth quarter:

Palliative Care Program
The Morton Plant Mease Palliative Care Program is an interdisciplinary medical specialty that focuses on preventing and relieving suffering and on supporting the best possible quality of life for patients and their families facing serious illness. Palliative Care has become an even more integral part of patient care in the face of the pandemic. COVID-19 has highlighted the importance and relevance of our services, as our palliative teams have filled gaps left by isolation, restrictive visitation, masked caregivers all in the midst of an illness, which we are still trying to understand.

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Training Program
Faced with a significant RN nursing shortage, this grant will help launch a model of care called "Team Nursing", which is based on the functional model of Nursing where members of the nursing team are assigned to complete certain tasks for a group of patients. The scope of responsibilities for each member of the team is delineated by their training and nursing licensure. To transition to the Team Model of nursing, our hospitals will partner with academic institutions who have experience with training LPNs. The grant will also help hire an RN educator to facilitate didactic and clinical instruction using the policies and standards adopted by our Morton Plant Mease nursing team. The team members tuition would be paid, and the team member would be eligible for need based scholarships to supplement their income and pay for living expenses. After graduation, the LPN will attend nursing orientation and an LPN Internship Program. The LPN Internship Program will assist the newly graduated LPN transition from academia to acute care practice. Additionally, the LPN Internship program will prepare the LPN to practice in the Team Nursing model of care.

Mease Countryside Diagnostic Cardiology Treadmill
The Diagnostic Cardiology Department at Mease Countryside Hospital sees an average of 150 patients a month for nuclear imaging, and most of these patients will walk on the treadmill for their stress images - rather than receiving a chemical stress agent.  This grant helped purchase a new treadmill with EKG monitoring to better test patients for nuclear medicine. For active patients who could walk on the treadmill, most cardiologists prefer having their patients walk on the treadmill rather than receiving the chemical stress agent.

Toys for Morton Plant North Bay Hospital’s Holiday Lights
The Foundation had a donor who supported purchasing toys for all the children at the Morton Plant North Bay Hospital Holiday Lights last year, however the celebration was rescheduled due to the pandemic. While this year’s event is back in person, the format will be a drive-through only event. This grant will ensure every child in attendance receives a toy for the holidays.

WOW! Nursing and Team Member Excellence Awards
The WOW! Nursing and Team Member Excellence Awards honors our compassionate and caring nurses and team members who exemplify outstanding customer service, teamwork and commitment to excellence. WOW! winners are nominated by fellow team members. The winners are selected by a committee composed of a cross section of team members including senior leadership, directors, managers and peers.

Nursing Education and Engagement
Philanthropy helps our hospitals attract, reward, recognize and retain talented nurses, provide them the tools to enhance their learning, offer professional development programs, certification courses, research projects, and helps to distinguish our nurses as leaders. Thanks to our community, Morton Plant Mease team members currently enrolled in a nursing program have many options for scholarships, including the Joan Clow Seminar Fund and Peace Memorial Joseph Clapp Scholarship.

To learn more about the projects funded by your community investments at the not-for-profit hospitals of Morton Plant Mease, please contact Eric Barsema, Director of Community Impact, at (727) 461-8647 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..