The Area of Greatest Need is Sault Area Hospital Foundation's unrestricted fund, and where most donations to the Foundation are directed. Gifts to this fund can be spent on any of the most urgent equipment needs across the Hospital.
While some donors may choose to direct their support to a specific program or department, these restrictions mean donations are held until that program/area has an approved need. In contrast, Area of Greatest Need donations are put to use immediately to help across the hospital. They purchase the most urgently needed tools, helping the most patients and having the greatest impact at our hospital.
While many donors have good intentions when restricting a gift, sometimes they aren't considering the full gamut of services needed to help patients at our hospital.
Imagine - visiting the hospital with a broken bone:
You arrive at the Emergency Department
You are sent to Medical Imaging for x-rays
If it’s a bad break, you may need Surgery
Even after being discharged…
You would return to an Outpatient Clinic to have your cast removed
You could return for Physiotherapy
After this experience, you might choose to make a gift back to our "Critical Care Fund" because the Emergency Department was so helpful - but then your gift would be restricted. We couldn't use your donation toward a new x-ray machine (like the one we used to determine your bone was broken), new hospital beds (like the one you slept in after surgery) or new therapeutic equipment (like the tools they used in physio to help you recover).
That's not to mention the many behind-the-scenes areas at our Hospital that played a critical role in your care. Sterile processing - where the equipment for your surgery was cleaned and disinfected; the Lab - where they ran tests to check your blood for infection; or the Pharmacy - which supplied the pain medication you were given. These areas all need critical equipment to do their work, and depend on donations to the "Area of Greatest Need" to get these tools.
When you give to Sault Area Hospital Foundation's "Area of Greatest Need", you're helping across the whole Hospital.
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