Impact FALL 2007 - Yale-New Haven Hospital

FALL 2007
impact
Making an
SUPPORTING THE MISSION OF
YALE-NEW HAVEN HOSPITAL
Blessed to
be Alive
While his parents prayed, John Fiorita
survived two open heart surgeries, a
stomach surgery and treatment for a
collapsed lung at Yale-New Haven
Children’s Hospital. He was just a year
old. Now, two years later, he runs
circles around his parents.

impact
Making an
FALL 2007
Editor
Jeannette Young
Associate Editors
Jessica Scheps
Carol Cheney
Writer
Ross Grant
4
FEATURES
COVER STORY
Blessed to be Alive
After being treated by almost every specialist at the children’s
hospital, John Fiorita is now just a normal 3-year-old boy
Principal Photographer
Robert Lisak
Additional Photographers
Janice Baker
Toni Fracasso
Park Place Photographers, Inc.
Ray Paige Photography
Jessica Scheps
8
ON THE GROUND
Giving Heart
At 17, Frank Barbiero has mapped out his life,
and volunteering is the first step
Design and Production
Cheney & Company
Printing
Harty Integrated Solutions
Yale-New Haven Hospital
Office of Development
PO Box 1849
New Haven, CT 06508-1849
(203) 688-9644
www.ynhh.org/develop
Impact is a quarterly publication
of the Yale-New Haven Hospital
Office of Development for donors,
volunteers and friends of the
hospital.
Copyright © 2007 Yale-New Haven
Hospital. All rights reserved. No
part of this publication may be
reproduced or transmitted by any
means or in any form without
written permission from YNHH.
An EEO/AAP employer.
10
CANCER HOSPITAL CAMPAIGN
Building Hope
Architecture alone will save lives at the cancer hospital
PROFILES
12 John M. Letizia: Why I Gave
15 Fred M. Bering: Giving with a Plan
NEWS FROM YALE-NEW HAVEN HOSPITAL
3 Top Hospital & By the Numbers
6 Head & Heart
7 Hats & Hogs, Silent Auction, Art and Baker Win
9 Auxiliary Supports Gift to Women’s Health
12 Thank You
14 A Gift that Gives Back
14 Letter from Marna Borgstrom
16 Tax Credits

Top Hospital
YALE-NEW HAVEN HOSPITAL
BY THE NUMBERS
Two reports rank YNHH among the best
Two recent reports by national publications
showcase the growing reputation of
Yale-New Haven Hospital as one of the
country’s best hospitals.
In July, U.S. News & World Report
named YNHH the 15th best hospital in
the United States. It was the first time
the hospital was listed in the publication’s
elite Honor Roll of 18 top hospitals.
The report also listed YNHH as one
of the best in the nation in 10 of the 16
medical specialties evaluated: cancer;
digestive disorders; ear, nose and throat;
endocrinology; geriatrics; gynecology;
heart and heart surgery; kidney disease;
psychiatry; and respiratory disorders.
And in May, USA Today began its
cover story by suggesting that residents
living near YNHH are among the luckiest
in the country, because of the hospital’s
premier care.
YNHH “has one of the nation’s lowest
heart attack death rates, according to
confidential data obtained by USA Today
from a Medicare analysis of death rates at
more than 4,000 hospitals,” the article
reads.
The hospital also ranks higher than
the national and state averages in other
critical categories: heart failure, pneumonia,
surgical care and infection prevention.
The government data—which has
long been kept secret—was recently
released to the public by the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services.
It can be viewed at:
www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov
U.S. News & World Report reviewed 5,462
hospitals nationwide for its 2007 list of
America’s Best Hospitals. Of those, 173
made the top rankings. And only 18 showed
the “marked breadth of expertise” to be
named to the honor roll. Yale-New Haven
Hospital was listed as the 15th best.
SPECIALTY RANKINGS
Geriatrics #7
Psychiatry #9
Gynecology #11
Digestive Disorders #16
Endocrinology #17
Kidney Disease #19
Respiratory Disorders #19
851 million
Total operating expenses,
in dollars, in 2006
122 million
Free and uncompensated care,
in dollars, given in 2006
503,656
Outpatient visits in 2006
113,921
Emergency room visits
in 2006
7,220
Employees
4,814
Babies born at the Yale-New
Haven Children’s Hospital in
2006
5.2
Average length of hospital
stay, in days
1Connecticut hospital listed on
the U.S. News & World Report
Honor Roll of America’s 18 best
hospitals in 2007
FALL 2007 3

COVER STORY
John, center, with
his older siblings,
Matthew and Emma,
at their home in
Darien. After John
survived his final
surgery, his brother
and sister were so
grateful they now
donate their birthday
gifts to the toy closet
at the Yale-New Haven
Children’s Hospital.
MAKING AN IMPACT AT YALE-NEW HAVEN

Paul Fiorita and son John
Blessed to be Alive
Each evening during that trying month, as Paul Fiorita walked into the pediatric
intensive care unit, a nurse would hand him a stethoscope.
It became a ritual, a calming end to his
mad dash after work up I-95 to the Yale-
New Haven Children’s Hospital. He had
no medical training, but with help from
staff, Paul learned how to decode the subtle
sounds in the stethoscope.
He would kiss his wife and then sit
next to his son’s hospital bed. Before
hearing the official medical report, he
would listen to the six-month-old’s heartbeat
and strained breathing to make his
own assessment.
“I’d check if he was having a good or
bad day,” Paul recalls.
John Fiorita, breathing with the help
of machines, was a warrior. He had
already undergone one open-heart surgery
(a second would come six months
later) and dozens of tests and procedures.
Now his lungs were collapsed, partially
filled with fatty bile from his stomach.
Doctors were working to determine the
mysterious cause.
Missy Fiorita, Paul’s wife, followed her
own ritual during that month of waiting
and watching. She slept in a cot next to
John’s bed, waking up throughout the
night as nurses and doctors made their
rounds. In the morning, wearing pajamas,
she joined the medical team as they studied
John’s condition.
The only time Missy left the hospital
was to get a cup of coffee in the late
morning. For meals, she joined the nurses
in ordering out.
“I wasn’t going to leave,” she says, two
years later. “It was my job to be with
John.”
The job was much less difficult
because they were part of the process,
Paul and Missy say. Doctors at the children’s
hospital make it a policy to include
parents in medical decisions. As the medical
team visits their child, parents are
invited to participate. They can read the
charts, if they wish, or use a stethoscope.
“It isn’t just about making the family
feel connected; it also improves care. No
one knows a child like his parents,” says
Dr. Michael Apkon, one of the many
physicians who treated John, who now
leads the children’s hospital.
So while the team of doctors did sleep
studies and bronchoscopies or consulted
with specialists around the country, Paul
and Missy also monitored John’s fluctuating
condition. Eventually, the team
decided to perform a difficult surgery that
would prevent bile from entering his
lungs. And as with his other surgeries—
the first occurring when John was 12 days
old—it was a success. Two years later, he’s
as healthy as any other three-year-old.
To thank Yale-New Haven, the two
older Fiorita children, Matthew and
Emma, decided to give their birthday
gifts to the toy closet. And the family
chose to help financially support the hospital’s
family-centered programs, which
depend on donor giving.
“We’re blessed he’s still alive, and we
never want to take that for granted,”
Missy says. “The hospital walls became a
safe haven for us during some very difficult
trials for our family. All I have to do
now is to put my three-year-old in the
bathtub and I’m reminded of Yale-New
Haven and the miracles this hospital
performs each and every day. How could
one not want to remain part of that”
Of course, being a normal kid also
means John gets into his fair share of
trouble. “We went from praying for him
to disciplining him. It’s quite a change,
but it’s a good change,” Paul says. =
FALL 2007 5

Dr. Michael Apkon was appointed vice
president and executive director of the
Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital
in 2006. He was previously the vice
president for performance management
at Yale New Haven Health System, overseeing
clinical and operational improvements
across a three-hospital system.
Head&Heart
Balancing the two sides of quality child medicine
In 1946, a group of pediatric doctors at
Yale-New Haven Hospital suggested a
novel approach. Allowing mothers to
share a room with their newborns, they
reasoned, would make the hospital visit
less painful for both.
The hospital was the first to offer
rooming-in to mothers, and thus became
a national leader in the movement to
care for the emotional needs of hospitalized
children. Other programs followed:
art, music, drama, sibling activities,
involving parents in morning rounds, and
most of all, play.
“One of the most natural things for
children is play. Getting them out of
bed—giving them a reason to get out of
bed—is part of the healing process,” says
Dr. Michael Apkon, vice president and
executive director of the Yale-New Haven
Children’s Hospital.
Child medicine is a unique challenge
for hospital staff. Because of birth
defects and the many changes children
undergo during the early years of life,
the variety of conditions is greater than
in adult hospitals. Doctors often
encounter rare illnesses with little medical
precedent. As a result, the amount of
specialization and staffing required to
run a comprehensive maternity and pediatric
hospital is very high.
Families also need social services and
facilities that support the medicine. Yet
family-centered care is rarely covered
through medical billings. “It usually
only happens through philanthropy,”
Apkon says.
These two factors—specialization and
family-centered care—increase the cost
of care at YNHH by $5 to $10 million a
year. If it isn’t funded through donations,
the children’s hospital would not be able
to offer the level of care that allows children
like John Fiorita to survive. (John is
pictured above with his mother, Missy.)
Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital is
Connecticut’s only accredited level 1
trauma unit. Some of its other unique
services include: mechanical heart and
lung support for critically ill infants and
children, and bone marrow and liver
transplants. But they come at a price.
“It’s an incredible experience to be
involved in some of the most significant
moments for a parent and child, both
good and bad,” Apkon says. “It carries
with it a lot of responsibility.”
6
MAKING AN IMPACT AT YALE-NEW HAVEN

Hats&Hogs
A pack of bikers makes kids happy
“ SERVE LOVE” FUNDRAISER
More than 70 people attended the
fifth annual Serve Love silent auction,
held at the 2007 Pilot Pen tennis
tournament. Guests attended a buffet
brunch and then bid on more than
40 items, including stuffed animals,
tickets to the Jon Stewart show and a
weekend at a rental home in Vermont.
Afterward, participants attended
opening day tennis matches.
Serve Love raised approximately
$15,000. The event was started by
Jane Farrington, shown above with
her spouse, Michael Schaefer, their
son, James, and Vin Petrini, YNHH
senior vice president of public affairs.
It was a calm summer Sunday, except
for the rumble. More than 300 motorcyclists
in leather and denim rode through
New Haven June 10 on their way to
Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital. As
a part of the third annual Don’s Hat
Rack Ride, the bikers visited a dozen
young patients to give them treats and let
them sit on their hogs.
But mostly, they came to replenish the
hat rack, located in the infusion room at
the pediatric specialty clinic. While children
receive treatment, they can see the
hats and decide which one they want to
keep.
“All motorcyclists brought hats,” said
Jessica B. Scheps, manager of special
events at YNHH. “The hats could be silly,
practical, cool or sporty. The purpose is
for children going through chemotherapy
to be able to make a choice of their own.”
Don’s Hat Rack was originally started
in memory of Donald Perrotti, a patient
at the children’s hospital, who lost his
six-year battle with Ewing’s Sarcoma
in 1998.
“We get to see the kids’ faces. We
bring the gifts to them and to see their
smiles is amazing,” Toni Fracasso, whose
family started the charity, told News
Channel 8.
And after wowing the children with
their motorcycles, the group rode off to a
charity barbecue in West Haven, where
organizers collected $11,000 in donations
to the children’s hospital.
Pablo Rosa, a patient at Yale-New Haven
Children’s Hospital, had a chance to fulfill
his dream of sitting atop a Harley.
ART AND BAKER WIN
IN HEALING KIDS
Janice Baker, coordinator of the child
life arts and enrichment program at
YNHCH, recently received the 2007 Art
Achievement in healthcare award by
the Guilford Art Center.
Baker promotes art as a therapeutic
tool for helping pediatric patients
cope with hospitalization and illness
through poetry, music, daily art activities,
performance programs and digital
storytelling. She helped produce a
book of patient poems and songs
called “I Am,” which is distributed to
pediatric patients at YNHCH.
“The presence of the arts in the
hospital helps to create a safe, caring,
healing environment for children and
families,” said Baker.
FALL 2007 7

on the ground
Giving Heart
Frank Barbiero is part
of an army of volunteers
at the hospital, who
together logged 72,982
hours in 2006
With a swift and practiced hand, Frank
Barbiero loads the tray. Chips. Sandwich.
Cookies and condiments. He runs to the
fridge for a container of juice. Then he
studies the meal with a stern gaze, and
finally delivers it.
He’s rosy cheeked and not yet 17. A
baseball player and aspiring surgeon. And
today Frank, a volunteer, is serving lunch
to cancer patients.
Quickly he marches to an older
woman in the corner. He takes her order
and rushes back to the lunch cart. Carefully
he prepares her tray with a few brisk
motions. Head down, focused.
“First time I’ve seen him work all
week,” a nurse jokes as she passes by.
Finally Frank cracks a smile. And as if
the clouds parted, it’s suddenly clear how
this young man’s understated enthusiasm
brightens the room.
Around him in the YNHH medical
oncology treatment center, 20 patients of
various ages sit in hospital recliners. Each
is attached to an IV infusion pump. Some
read magazines or real estate listings.
Others work sudoku puzzles, watch TV
or type on laptops. They’re all trying to
go about life as usual. But in moments,
the air of the room seems filled with a
heavy spirit.
Frank and the others at the lunch cart
provide a spark. He moves from patient
to patient as Sheryl Sobolewski heats
8
MAKING AN IMPACT AT YALE-NEW HAVEN

AUXILIARY SUPPORTS GIFT TO WOMEN’S HEALTH
Twenty years ago, the Yale-New Haven
Hospital mobile mammography program
began with a converted RV, which traveled
throughout Southern Connecticut to
offer screenings outside grocery stores
and senior centers. The purpose of the
program hasn’t changed since then, but
it now uses a new 40-foot-long digital
mammography van, the only one of its
kind in New England.
The YNHH Auxiliary donated $100,000
toward the vehicle, which replaces one
purchased in 1996. Outfitted with stateof-the-art
equipment and certified mammography
technicians, the mobile unit
represents a collaboration between the
hospital, the Yale Cancer Center and the
Hill Health Center.
“The idea is to bring mammography
screening to the community. This new
van will help us better accomplish that
mission,” said Shirley Pinette, manager of
the YNHH Breast Center, who has
worked at the hospital for 28 years.
The 1,000-member Auxiliary helped
purchase the older van, and was committed
to replace it when it recently began
having mechanical problems. The group
raises money through fundraising events
and hospital gift shop sales. Every year,
members choose several programs to
support, which might not be funded
otherwise.
“Our one goal is to raise money for
the hospital,” said Kathrine Neville, president
of the Auxiliary. “We do myriad
things with the help of donations from
our membership. We have always been
adamant about the mammography van.
It’s for women who would have difficulty
getting a screening if the van didn’t
come to them.”
Digital mammography has a number
of advantages over film: the program can
do more screenings per hour, technicians
can download images quickly for physician
analysis, and it has been proven
more effective in screening women 50
years old and younger.
The new digital mammography van travels
throughout Southern Connecticut.
“The auxiliary has been extremely
generous to us,” Pinette said. “Like us,
they want to make certain that women
are obtaining their screening annually,
and that they get whatever care they
may need.”
The digital mobile mammography
service is offered Monday through Saturday
from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. To schedule
the van for a location or to make an
appointment, contact the Breast Center
at (203) 688-6800.
Becoming a member of the Yale-New
Haven Hospital Auxiliary costs just $25
a year. To join, contact the Auxiliary
office at (203) 688-5717.
Sheryl Sobolewski, right, has worked for
Yale-New Haven Hospital for 20 years. In
the last four years she has mentored more
than 30 volunteers at YNHH’s two oncology
treatment centers.
soup in the microwave. The two work
around each other, reaching for bananas
or Jello as they assemble trays. And then,
a minor disaster.
“We ran out of egg salad,” Sobolewski
says over her shoulder.
They confer about alternatives and
Frank goes to speak with the patient.
Sobolewski watches the exchange before
pulling out a new tray. She supervises and
mentors a dozen volunteers at YNHH’s
two oncology treatment centers, usually
working with them side by side.
“It gets crazy around lunch,” she says,
“but Frank is a good volunteer. I was
impressed with him the first time I saw
him.”
Frank, serving in a summer youth volunteer
program, comes to the treatment
center three days a week to dish up lunch
and hand out blankets. He’s part of an
army of volunteers at the hospital, who
together logged 72,982 hours in 2006.
And with Frank, there’s an added
bonus. He doesn’t mind teasing. The
nurses and doctors can’t help but joke
with him. The patients seem immediately
taken by his kind, affectionate manner.
“I’m the new guy,” he says, smiling.
“They know I can take it. I’m part of the
team now.” =
VOLUNTEERING AT YNHH
Each year, the hospital depends on more
than 1,500 volunteers of all ages. They help
by reading to children and elders, working
in the gift shop or at information desks,
talking to new patients about what to
expect during their visit, giving tours of the
hospital, and even sometimes serving
lunch.
For more information, call: (203) 688-2297
or online: www.ynhh.org/general/vol.html
FALL 2007 9

CANCER HOSPITAL CAMPAIGN
Building
hope Healing
architecture isn’t only
academic. Studies show design
can reduce hospital stays, pain,
stress and staff fatigue
Architectural renderings courtesy of Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson & Abbott of Boston
The Yale-New Haven Cancer Hospital may one day play a role in finding
the cure for cancer. But in the meantime, the design of the building
alone will likely save hundreds of lives.
Key design features of the cancer
hospital have been linked to improved
patient and family stress and healing, staff
morale and effectiveness, and the overall
quality and cost of healthcare, according
to a landmark 2004 study which compiles
the results of 600 other studies.
By one essential yardstick—the length
of hospital stays—patients in welldesigned
hospitals are released an average
of two to three days earlier than in poorly
designed hospitals.
“Not only is there a very large body
of evidence to guide hospital design, but
a very strong one. A growing scientific
literature is confirming that the conventional
ways hospitals are designed
contribute to stress and danger,” says the

Inside the lobby
(left), natural light
and warm building
materials such as
bamboo and maple
will create a calm,
inviting atmosphere.
The healing garden
outside (right), will
be visible from many
patient rooms in the
14-story cancer
hospital. Exposure to
nature has been
shown to improve
healing and shorten
hospital stays.
study, funded by the California-based
Center for Health Design.
This evidence is addressed in every
facet of the cancer hospital’s architecture:
natural lighting, green space, improved
ventilation, and single-patient rooms.
“We know the environment of a
hospital helps in the healing process. We
considered this from the start,” says
Norman G. Roth, YNHH’s senior vice
president of administration.
Once finished in 2009, the $497
million cancer hospital won’t even look
like a medical center.
“It will be warm and inviting. The
rooftop garden will give it the feeling of a
city park. It won’t feel like you’re going
into a hospital, but it’s a place that will
emphasize healing,” says Angela E.
Watson, principal designer with Boston
architects Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson
& Abbott.
To determine the best design, planners
held focus groups, in which patients and
family members toured existing hospitals
to suggest changes. Their input led to
larger patient rooms, overnight rooms for
visitors, and the garden, visible from
many of the hospital rooms.
“We want to be able to say legitimately
that families and patients helped us
Yale-New Haven Hospital is now building
the foundation of the capital campaign for
the new cancer hospital. Read more about
it in the next issue of Impact.
design and equip the hospital. This building
should reflect what they see as their
needs, not just what we think they need,”
Roth says.
And computers did their part. Digital
models showed how natural light would
enter hospital rooms at different times of
day and different seasons of the year.
The link to nature is essential. Patients
exposed to natural light sleep better,
recover faster, perceive less pain and
require less pain medication. By “simply
viewing nature” patients experience less
stress and depression, and find a positive
distraction from pain, the study says.
“Daylight is so important for human
health. Not just for patients, but also
caregivers. People will want to work in
this hospital, and people will be healed
here,” Watson says. =
Source: The Role of the Physical Environment in the Hospital
of the 21st Century: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity,
Report to The Center for Health Design for the Designing
the 21st Century Hospital Project, September, 2004
Number of studies showing health
benefits of design improvements
IMPROVED VENTILATION
Reduced risk of healthcare workers
contracting infectious diseases 4
Reduced airborne infectious 11
SINGLE-PATIENT ROOMS
Lower infection rates 16
Easier to decontaminate 1
Reduced noise, which:
Improves sleep 5
Lowers blood pressure and stress 4
Decreases medication errors 3
BRIGHT NATURAL LIGHTING
Less depression 7
Shorter hospital stays 6
Improved sleep and
circadian rhythms 1
Less need for pain medication 1
Reduced medication errors 2
CENTRALIZED GARDEN
Quicker recovery from stress 4
Less pain perceived 4
Less need for pain medication 2
Lower blood pressure 2
Opportunities for positive escape
for staff and patients 3
Heightened patient and family
satisfaction with care 7
FALL 2007 11

THANK YOU
Stuart Robinson, Marna Borgstrom
In Gratitude
PROFILE
“I had just started law school when my best friend passed away. To cheer myself up, I went
Why I Gave
I was 22 when my best friend died of
cancer. For two years he fought it. Week
after week he went to Manhattan for
treatment, taking the bus from Staten
Island. And many of those weeks I traveled
with him.
The doctors put him in the children’s
ward. It was the most devastating place
I’d ever been—so many sick children. But
I appreciated what a true cancer hospital
could do. They cared for the families
along with the patients.
Recently, I pledged $10,000 to support
the new Yale-New Haven Cancer Hospital.
Then I learned about the hospital’s
family-centered design—the meditation
garden and rooms for families and visitors.
The designers were clearly thinking
John M. Letizia, Esq.
to see Woman of the Year, starring Katharine Hepburn. It was just what I needed. So I wrote
Katharine a grateful letter, and she wrote back: “That was such a really nice letter—made
me happy—thank you. … Good luck.” Her note was so inspiring, it helped me get through
this. I still look at it for inspiration.”
about everyone who comes into a hospital,
not just the patients. I was so impressed I
increased my gift to $25,000. I do not
want the hospital to have to cut corners.
My wife and I are younger than most
donors, but decided the time was right to
give. We feel strongly that you should
donate whenever you can, not just when
you’re older, and when your donation can
really make a difference.
Just a year after my best friend died,
my father also died of cancer. It was so
hard on us. It took years for my family
to recover. That’s why this cancer hospital
is so important to us all. It will be a
hospital that welcomes families, that
offers healing to everyone.
On a lovely mid-June evening, Yale-
New Haven Hospital held its fifth
annual “In Gratitude” reception
to thank its largest donors (those
giving more than $10,000). A few
hundred individual, foundation
and corporate donors attended the
event, held at the New Haven
Country Club.
Marna Borgstrom, YNHH
president and chief executive
officer, said the evening was an
opportunity to celebrate the
accomplishments donor support
has made possible. Joseph
Crespo, chairman of the Board
of Trustees, said Yale-New Haven
Hospital continues to be the hospital
of choice for the communities it
serves. He also said the hospital
had a productive year and had
more than 50,000 inpatient admissions
and over 500,000 visits to the
various clinics. Marvin Lender,
chairman of the Development
Committee, introduced the
evening’s featured speaker, Jim
Zielinski, a U.S. Army veteran and
financial adviser, who described
how grateful he was for the
hospital’s caring medical staff.
12
MAKING AN IMPACT AT YALE-NEW HAVEN

(L–R) Marna Borgstrom, John Fenn, MD,
Natalie Fenn, Myrna Baskin, Peter Herbert, MD,
Maureen Herbert
(L–R) Alyssa Blume, Helaine Lender, Richard
Edelson, MD, Peter Blume, MD
(L–R) Sperie Perakos, Marna Borgstrom,
Gerry Lees, Nancy Brown
Cancer Hospital Discussion
At the New Haven Lawn Club, 60 guests
joined hospital staff for a May luncheon
and discussion about the Yale-New Haven
Cancer Hospital. Marvin Lender,
chairman of the YNHH Development
Committee, pointed out that the cancer
hospital will be the largest building ever
to be built in New Haven. Jonathan
Bush, co-chair of the Cancer Hospital
Campaign Committee, emphasized that
the cancer hospital will allow not only
cutting-edge care, but also research.
Marna Borgstrom, president and chief
executive officer, said the cancer hospital
will be the newest in a long history of
major advancements during the hospital’s
181 years.
Norman Roth, senior vice president
of administration, described how the
cancer hospital was designed to incorporate
a more natural healing process with
innovations in sustainability and energy
consumption. And Dr. Peter Herbert,
chief of staff and senior vice president of
medical affairs, told guests about the
existing cancer expertise at the hospital,
which treats 4,000 cancer patients a year.
Norman Roth
Peter Herbert, MD
(L–R) Marvin Lender,
F. Patrick McFadden
(L–R) Janette Parker, Henry Parker,
Gloria Schoolfield
FALL 2007 13

DEVELOPMENT STAFF
Dear Friends,
Welcome to the first issue of Impact. This publication, as the name suggests,
will highlight the impact made by Yale-New Haven’s many supporters. We
have endeavored to record a few of their stories, and we truly hope you find
them interesting, and an inspiration as well.
What amazes me most about these stories and the faces in the photos is
that despite their differences, each person has been touched by experiences
at our hospital. And in response, they have chosen to give of themselves.
We have all, in some way, experienced the impact of Yale-New Haven
Hospital. All of us who work to support the mission of Yale-New Haven
Hospital share a goal of enhancing the positive impact our Hospital can
have on our patients, their families, and on the larger community. And we
are especially proud that our work together has continued to advance the
Hospital’s national recognition as demonstrated by our inclusion on the
U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll of best hospitals this year.
Thank you for taking a moment to look through this issue. I hope it
reinforces your own decision to be part of the Yale-New Haven family.
Thank you for your ongoing support of all that we do.
Warmest regards,
Susan St. Onge
Chief Development Officer
(203) 688-8724
susan.stonge@ynhh.org
Myrna Ceccorulli
Coordinator, Gift Support Services
(203) 688-8723
myrna.ceccorulli@ynhh.org
John Dixon
Director, Planned Giving
(203) 688-5902
john.dixon@ynhh.org
Christine Franquemont
Director, Institutional Giving
(203) 688-5956
christine.franquemont@ynhh.org
Melody Harrison
Coordinator, Gift Support Services
(203) 688-8730
melody.harrison@ynhh.org
Jessica Scheps
Manager, Special Events
(203) 688-8727
jessica.scheps@ynhh.org
Michael Seeley
Director, Major Gifts
(203) 688-3582
michael.seeley@ynhh.org
Alison Smith-Marcinek
Development Officer, Major Gifts
(203) 688-4394
alison.marcinek@ynhh.org
Virginia Sorrentino
Development Assistant
(203) 688-8720
virginia.sorrentino@ynhh.org
Jamy Stenger
Development Assistant
(203) 688-1031
jamy.stenger@ynhh.org
Qaya Thompson
Gift Support Services Assistant
(203) 688-7061
qaya.thompson@ynhh.org
Lisa VanDerMaelen
Executive Assistant
(203) 688-8722
lisa.vandermaelen@ynhh.org
Scotti Williams
Development Officer, Major Gifts
(203) 688-9571
scotti.williams@ynhh.org
Rebecca Yao
Director, Development
Operations
(203) 688-8731
rebecca.yao@ynhh.org
Jeannette Young
Director, Communications
and Annual Fund
(203) 688-8728
jeannette.young@ynhh.org
Marna P. Borgstrom
President and Chief Executive Officer
PLANNED GIVING
A GIFT THAT GIVES BACK
The concept of the charitable gift annuity
in America dates back to 1843, when a
Boston merchant donated money to the
American Bible Society in exchange for a
flow of payments. Today, the concept
includes tax benefits for donors.
“Gift annuities are some of the most
popular gifts in recent years,” says John
W. Dixon, YNHH’s director of planned giving,
who joined the development department
this year after 30 years in trust management.
“If you have money in a CD you’re
lucky if you get 5 percent return, but with
this type of planned gift, you get considerably
more. You can also designate your
gift be used for a specific purpose that is
most meaningful to you,” Dixon says.
Donors receive tax deductions of about
half the size of the gift. The interest rate
depends on the donor’s age. Once a
contract is signed, that rate is guaranteed
for life.
Deferring payment increases the annuity.
For example, if you donated at age 60,
but waited to receive payments until you
were 65, the annuity rate increases from
5.7 to 7.7 percent. If you waited until you
were 70 the rate jumps to 10.7 percent.
APPROXIMATE DEDUCTION
AS PERCENT OF ORIGINAL GIFT
Age Rate of Return Deduction
50 5.3 32%
60 5.7 38%
70 6.5 44%
80 8.0 52%
90+ 11.3 59%
For the hospital, the gifts help develop
a strong bond between the institution
and the benefactor.
“We’re building a relationship with
these donors for life,” Dixon says.
14
MAKING AN IMPACT AT YALE-NEW HAVEN

PROFILE
The letter, which has guided Fred M.
Bering’s life, was written on plain white
paper. His father’s flowing German script
described what was expected of young
Frederick as he began his fifteenth year.
It was 1936. Stuttgart. Two years later,
Bering fled Germany for America, carrying
$9 and his father’s letter.
“My parents knew they couldn’t leave,”
he recalls. “A lot of the Jewish parents
were sending their children away. They
Fred M. Bering
Giving with a Plan
had to. My mother still got out in ’41
with a handbag and nothing else. My
father didn’t make it.”
Bering found a job as stock boy in a
corset factory in Queens. In 1948, he met
his wife, Irmi Ann, and they eventually
moved to Connecticut. It wasn’t until two
years ago, after Irmi Ann passed away,
that he again found the letter from his
father.
If you should find yourself in a position
where you have more than you need for
yourself, think of those who are less fortunate,
the letter read.
“When you’re 15 years old, you don’t
pay much attention to what your father
tells you. You think you know more. Yet
basically he predicted the life I would
live,” Bering says.
In 1997, Bering had a triple bypass
heart surgery performed by Dr. John A.
Elefteriades at YNHH. During the surgery,
he developed a connection to the
staff. So when Bering sold his house last
year, he decided to give some of the money
to support the work of Elefteriades, who
now runs the Center for Aortic
Aneurysms at the hospital. But he also
needed to set aside funds for living
expenses. A charitable gift annuity proved
the ideal choice.
“It’s really a win-win,” says John W.
Dixon, director of planned giving for
YNHH. “The donor can make a charitable
contribution to the hospital in
exchange for an income stream for life,
and an income tax deduction the year
that the gift is made.”
The benefits are dramatic. Bering
gave $300,000, and last year received a
$163,000 tax deduction. Because he is 86,
he will receive a 9.9 percent payout on
the gift for the rest of his life. He receives
$29,700 a year from YNHH, a good portion
of which is tax free.
Although the rate is higher for older
donors, the rates are favorable even for
donors aged 50 and over (see page 14).
And the annuity increases significantly
when donors defer payments, making
such gifts an ideal way to supplement
retirement income. And they also have
long-term value to the hospital.
“It’s a very good way to help others
and to help yourself,” Bering says. “To
me, it’s a very obvious thing to do.”
FALL 2007
15

Little-known Tax
Credit Yields Big
Although few corporations know about it,
a state program allows them to take a 60
percent tax credit on any gift they make to
Yale-New Haven Hospital.
“This is a great program the state created
to encourage philanthropy. We want to
make sure our corporate donors know about
it, because it’s to their advantage and ours,”
says Christine Franquemont, director of
institutional giving for YNHH.
Considering the benefit to corporate
donors—60 cents on every dollar they
donate—the one-page application for the
Neighborhood Assistance Act is well
worth filling out. For more information, or
to receive an application form, contact
Christine Franquemont at (203) 688-5956.
Address Service Requested
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New Haven, CT
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Yale-New Haven Hospital
Office of Development
PO Box 1849
New Haven, CT 06508-1849