Page 41 - BusinessWest July 11, 2022

At an elaborate press conference to announce the creation of the palliative care unit, staged last month in Mercy’s courtyard, several speakers, including Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, both of whom became friends with Yee in recent years, talked about how the facility would not only meet
a need, but speak — and in dramatic fashion — to Yee’s passion for giving back.
Indeed, before talking about the new unit, what it would offer, and what it would mean for patients and their families, Bitsoli set the tone by first turning back the clock to the early weeks of the pandemic, when Yee arranged to bring a Peter Pan bus full of food for staff at the hospital.
“There was another time when
I called Andy and said, ‘I need your help,’ and he immediately said ‘what can I do?’” she recalled. “I said ‘it’s been a tough day for the staff; I need 1,000 roast-beef sandwiches. He said ‘when?’ I said ‘tomorrow.’ He said ‘I’ll get them there.’ And he did get them there.”
This desire to give back to those at the hospital and to support employees continued until that last stay in the ICU, said Bitsoli, noting that before he fell gravely ill, Andy Yee and officials at
“We love our house and the memories that we made here ... but I didn’t want these to be our last memories of him.”
Mercy were planning a large, thank- you-to-staff celebration that would take place in that same courtyard as the press conference. That celebration never happened, but the spirit that spawned it would inspire something with more-lasting impact on the hospi- tal and the patients it will serve.
Indeed, in the latter stages of her husband’s battle against cancer, Sarah Yee said she had many conversations with Andy’s oncologist, Dr. Philip Glynn, Bitsoli, and others about how donations in Andy’s name to Mercy Medical Center might best be used. There was talk of funding additional infusion rooms, she said, referring
to facilities where infusion therapy is administered to cancer patients.
But officials at Mercy identified a greater need — one for palliative care facilities that would cater to critically ill patients who are mostly at the end of their lives.
Such facilities are not common, said Bitsoli, noting that fewer than 20% of hospitals offer palliative care.
“There are not many units like
this; it really takes a combination of
a vision and particular type of exper- tise,” she noted, adding that the unit will be overseen by Glynn and Dr. Lau- rie Loiacono, chief of Critical Care at
Mercy. “It also takes a particular type of administration that feels committed to providing that type of experience for patients and families. It’s a particular unit that is resourced and outfitted in a very unique way, and you have to
be behind that vision — and we’re all behind that vision.
“As the population ages, there is considerable focus on palliative medi- cine, which focuses on how someone passes in a dignified way, in a setting where they are surrounded by loved ones and in a supportive manner,” she went on. “There is a level of expertise
Caring
Continued on page 43
Andy Yee was a successful entrepreneur known for his passion for giving back. The palliative care unit is a continuation of that legacy.
4 IN-A-ROW
GRADE A’S FOR HOSPITAL SAFETY
Mercy Medical Center is proud to announce that we’ve been awarded the Leapfrog “A” Hospital Safety Grade for the 4th consecutive time. This is a national distinction recognizing Mercy’s achievements in protecting patients from harm and providing high-quality, safe health care.
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospitals’ prevention of medical errors and other harms to patients in their care.
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