Phone Directory
Careers at JMH
Find a Physician
Patient Services
Patient Greetings
Visitor & Other Services
Community Education
News at JMH
JMH Foundation
Volunteer Services
Quality/Compliance
WebLinks
|
|
|
|
Future Hospice Center to Receive Contribution
On Thursday, company officials at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceutical Industries Inc. in Clayton will present a check for $100,000 to the Johnston Memorial Hospital Foundation for a future hospice center.
The Foundation is in the planning stages for a capital campaign to raise $3.8 million for a 12-bed center to serve the needs of terminally ill patients in Johnston County. The 7.4-acre site is on the former Bingham Park property on Hospital Road behind the hospital’s main campus in Smithfield.
“We manage our company according to the Triple Bottom Line philosophy, that a company can be economically vital, while being socially and environmentally responsible,” said Lars Norbert, vice president of the Clayton plant.
“Two things important to us in our social responsibility are the patients we serve and the communities that help us serve them. Johnston Memorial Hospital hospice is a compassionate endeavor that shares these passions and we are proud to support it,” he said.
Foundation and hospital leaders will gratefully accept the contribution during a presentation at 1 p.m. at the site. In case of rain, the presentation will move indoors to the Johnston Medical Mall.
Jim Jenkins, chairman of the Foundation Board, called the contribution a boost to the board’s commitment to seeing that a hospice center is built for the community.
“Novo Nordisk has stepped up at the outset and said ‘count us in’,” he said. “It shows that an inpatient hospice center holds great value in the eyes of a major medical company.”
Jenkins, who has diabetes, praised the company for its efforts to stamp out the disease and for being concerned about the health and well being of Johnston County residents. About 10,100 people or 6.6 percent of Johnston County’s population has diabetes, according to data collected by the state.
Last year, Novo Nordisk opened a $100 million expansion of the Clayton plant for the production of FlexPen, the world’s number one selling pre-filled insulin pen. The company employs 400 people at the Clayton plant.
Kevin Rogols, president and CEO of Johnston Memorial Hospital, said the need for a hospice center is long overdue. Right now, patients and families must leave the county and drive for as long as an hour to reach the nearest hospice inpatient center, he said.
Johnston Memorial Home Care and Hospice, a nonprofit service of the hospital, has been offering in-home hospice care for the last 15 years. Once the center is built, the hospice staff will be able to offer an advanced level of care for patients as well as needed support for family members and caregivers.
With an emphasis on comfort and a family environment, the center will have a kitchen and common area, an outdoor flower garden and reflection pond. The rooms will be designed for the patients’ needs and to accommodate family members who want to spend the night with a loved one.
“Novo Nordisk is a fantastic corporate citizen, as well as a world leader in the treatment of diabetes,” Jenkins said. “We are so very thankful for their support in our efforts to build the hospice center.”
| |