[5 min read]
In this article:
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Read our 2021 Community Benefit Report and learn how we care for our communities outside the hospitals.
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Swedish is committed to understanding and addressing our communities' health needs.
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In 2021, Swedish supported over $8 million in subsidized health services and $34 million in subsidies for health education and research.
Our caregivers know patient care extends beyond our campuses. That is why we reach out and give back to our community, as reflected in Swedish's 2021 Community Benefit Report.
Last year, we were fueled by our commitment to understand and address our community’s health needs. Swedish funded four Doula Diversity Scholarships as part of our Black Birth Empowerment Initiative. That initiative was created as a direct response to community concerns about reducing health disparities in the Black community. Another initiative from direct community outreach was our partnership with nonprofit Refugee Artisan Initiative, to sew scrubs for our caregivers. And as the pandemic continued, we answered the call to vaccinate those who needed it most with our Swedish mobile vaccine clinics.
Kelly Guy, Puget Sound Community Health Investment & Partnerships regional director, says these partnerships focus on our most vulnerable, and show where we’ve had great impact.
“The report shows how Swedish is part of the solution—in access to care, providing financial assistance, improving health outcomes and reinvesting in community,” Guy says.
Much of the care that the community needs extend beyond our campuses, so we invest in our communities. In 2021, Swedish spent more than $252 million on community benefit programs, including $30 million in free and discounted care. Swedish supported $8.1 million in subsidized health services, $34.2 million in subsidies for health education and research and $174 million in unpaid costs of Medicaid and other government programs. Swedish provided access to more than 115,881 Medicaid patients.
“For me, the report is about showcasing our campuses’ community benefits work through research, subsidized health services, health profession education, free/discounted medical care to vulnerable populations and the unpaid cost of Medicaid,” Guy says. “The report also shows all caregivers are responsible for our work in the community."
This report showcases our mission outside of the hospital walls. Guy says the report can change policy and increase the visibility of our community partnerships that have always been a core part of our work.
"Caring for, partnering with, and investing in the greater Seattle community has always been a central part of our role," says Elizabeth Wako, M.D., Central Puget Sound Chief Executive.
Going forward, Swedish’s work will continue in collaboration with the greater Puget Sound area, with the Providence Swedish Puget Sound region, as outlined in a letter for the 2021 report by Guy Hudson, M.D., president and chief executive of Swedish Health Services and chief executive for the North division of Providence.
"The Providence Swedish family of organizations invests to help build a more equitable and sustainable future by supporting organizations, programs and initiatives that create lasting change and improve health and well-being in our communities," says Dr. Hudson.
In 2021, as COVID-19 extended into its second year and it seemed the end was nowhere in sight, Providence Swedish caregivers across the Puget Sound Region weathered the storm with dedication and compassion. We worked to address our communities’ most critical health needs while continuing long-term investment toward future needs.
As part of our commitment, we invested $406 million in community benefit across the Puget Sound Region in 2021. The region’s community programs and partnerships included:
In Northwest Washington: Providence Intervention Center for Assault and Abuse in Northwest Washington, an Emergency Room Care Navigator Program at Swedish, financial assistance for patients throughout the regions we serve.
Woven in to the fabric of the Pacific Northwest since 1910, Swedish is proud to partner with our community organizations to improve the health and well-being of every community member and committed to providing the right care at the right time for every Swedish patient.
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