by Beth Markowitz, Manager, Volunteer Services at SinaiSinai Hospital is extremely fortunate to host the only Baltimore chapter of Mended Heart Patient Visitors. The volunteers each have personal experience with heart disease, and are able to connect on an emotional level when they visit our patients at the Heart Center at Sinai.
Mended Hearts is a national nonprofit organization affiliated with the American Heart Association, and offering the gift of hope to heart disease patients, their families and caregivers for more than 50 years. Recognized for its role in facilitating a positive patient-care experience, Mended Hearts partners with 460 hospitals and rehabilitation clinics and offers services to heart patients through visiting programs, support group meetings and educational forums. Their mission is to "inspire hope in heart disease patients and their families." There is also a program for families of children with heart disease called Mended Little Hearts.
Sinai currently has seven mended hearts volunteers who visit patients on the second floor and offer support and assurance to patients and families. This connection often inspires the volunteers to go above and beyond. For example, one of our Mended Hearts recently waited for a patient through their procedure when they had no family. Another Mended Heart comforted a patient for more than an hour when the patient was feeling depressed. Pictured above are two of our Mended Hearts volunteers, Fran and Jack Becker.
In my opinion, Mended Hearts are a wonderful complement to the comprehensive care given in the Heart Center at Sinai Hospital!
To learn more about Volunteer Services at Sinai, you can call 410-601-WELL (9355).
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