Memorial Medical Center Foundation will provide more than $600,000 in grants to fund health-related projects in the community.

Grant recipients of the 30 projects, which received awards ranging from more than $2,100 to nearly $78,000, include SIU School of Medicine, YMCA of Springfield, University of Illinois at Springfield, Illinois College, Compass for Kids, Girls on the Run of Central Illinois and Mini O'Beirne Crisis Nursery. Grants have also been awarded to multiple projects within Memorial Health System.

“We are so excited to support these worthy causes,” Melissa Hansen Schmadeke, executive director of the Memorial Medical Center Foundation, said. “In addition to promoting the health of our community, these funds also enable the purchase of lifesaving equipment and educational materials. Thank you to all the donors who make these grants possible year after year.”

The grant recipients are:

• $77, 869 awarded to redesign the Memorial Medical Center Child Care Playground to enhance the experience for the children of MHS/SIU staff members.
• $60,008 to the Memorial Medical Center Rehab Services department to buy an exercise bike specially designed to treat patients who have suffered from strokes, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.
• $56,513 to the University of Illinois Chicago School of Nursing at University of Illinois Springfield to support the development of clinical simulation resources.
• $50,000 to Illinois College to buy educational equipment for the nursing program’s nursing lab. Equipment includes a portable medication administration unit with barcode scanning capabilities and four IV infusion pumps.
• $42,000 to SIU School of Medicine to support efforts to build a more diverse physician workforce.
• $36,571 to SIU School of Medicine to support research into using cold plasma technology to save burn patients from deadly infections.
• $36,231 to SIU School of Medicine to support the integration of portable ultrasound in family medicine education and training curriculum for medical students, residents and faculty.
• $32,500 to the YMCA summer camp to provide camp experiences and tutoring for 50 low-income children involved with Springfield-based Matthew Project and Wooden It Be Lovely.
• $31,806 to SIU School of Medicine to support a feasibility study to measure the impact of a family healthcare advocate on care compliance and satisfaction among low socioeconomic patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
• $22,491 to SIU School of Medicine to enhance diagnosis and treatment for patients with urethral disorders.
• $17,500 to Memorial Health System to train and certify employees and community members to assist patients in making treatment decisions based on their goals of care.
• $16,844 to SIU School of Medicine to support an initiative through SIU Neuroscience Institute’s Parkinson’s Disease Center.
• $16,185 to SIU School of Medicine for research with epithelial skin stem cells to enhance muscle growth.
• $11,956 to SIU School of Medicine to support research that will enhance muscle growth in patients with muscle defects.
• $10,868 to Memorial Medical Center Wound Healing Center to support education for staff and providers on hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
• $10,665 to SIU School of Medicine to support research into cardiovascular risk factors in aging and Alzheimer’s disease progression.
• $10,211 to University of Illinois Springfield to buy a variety of human anatomical models to enhance student learning in prehealth occupation courses.
• $9,830 to Compass for Kids’ Camp Care-A-Lot to provide meals, snacks, a licensed registered nurse on staff, medical supplies and material for recreational activities.
• $9,786 to SIU School of Medicine to buy microsurgery instruments, clamps and surgical sutures for surgery skills training.
• $9,023 to Memorial Physician Services to provide vision and hearing screenings for local school-aged children.
• $6,000 to Children's Museum Foundation Corporation to support a two-week STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math) residency for second-graders in District 186.
• $5,385 to Memorial Medical Center to support a psychiatric mental health nursing certification review course.
• $4,000 to Memorial Physician Services for stress management and resiliency training.
• $3,950 to Memorial Medical Center for the Critical Care registered nurse  review course for certification.
• $3,851 to Illinois Presbyterian Home for “Vitals are Vital to Health and Safety of Our Residents” equipment.
• $3,670 to Girls on the Run of Central Illinois to support Camp GOTR: Girls Have Power.
• $3,225 to Memorial Medical Center to support an orthopedic registered nurse certification review course.
• $3,131 to Downtown Springfield Heritage Foundation to provide hand-sanitizing stations, disinfectant for bathrooms, signage to mark and enforce social distancing and mask wearing at the 2021 Levitt AMP Springfield music series.
• $2,880 to The Joy of Movement: Dance for Parkinson's to support weekly dance classes for people with Parkinson’s disease and their partners.
• $2,180 to the Mini O'Beirne Crisis Nursery to provide CPR and first aid certification for staff.

Since 1984, the foundation has distributed more than $10 million in health-related grants. For more information about the foundation or its grant program, visit MemorialMedicalFoundation.com. 

The foundation board of directors’ executive officers are Rob Pietroburgo, Henry Dale Smith Jr., G. Virginia Conlee, Susan Gleason, Kaite Keim and Charles D. Callahan. Other board members are Brady Bird, J. Martin Green, Jennifer Isringhausen, Kirsten Kienzler, Cherrilyn Mayfield, J. William Roberts, Paul Staab III, Dr. Wendi Wills El-Amin, Valera Yazell and Monica M. Zanetti.