The Michael Ramsey Sills Memorial Fund was established August 16, 2003 to honor the life, death, and integrity of Michael R. Sills.
The Michael Ramsey Sills Memorial Fund supports educational services on bloodless medicine and surgery at Hartford Hospital and community programs.
If you are interested in making a donation toward the Michael Ramsey Sills Memorial Fund, please e-mail Eugene B. Scialdone at esciald@harthosp.org, or call him at (860) 545-3966.
To donate to Hartford Hospital's Annual Campaign, or to learn how your gift to Hartford Hospital can make a difference, click here.
Why the fund was started:
"Michael was 31 years of age when he was diagnosed with Aplastic Anemia, a rare disease where the bone marrow stops producing blood.
As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, a blood transfusion was not an option. Doctors involved at the early stages of his fast advancing disease were very uncomfortable with his determination, which in turn made our family uneasy. We finally decided to seek help from the Center of Bloodless Medicine and Surgery at Hartford Hospital. Although the protocol for Michael's treatment didn't change much, the doctors involved in his care not only respected his decision but showed dignity and compassion toward us for the choice made.
At The Center for Bloodless Medicine and Surgery at Hartford Hospital, we received care as a family. The added burden of having to defend ourselves for our determination was absent. The staff was committed, competent, and courageous enough to undertake such a challenge. Although Michael died August 16, 2002, he did so in a peaceful, caring environment, surrounded by people who respected and admired him for his integrity.
The care and support we received as a family through the Center for Bloodless Medicine and Surgery at Hartford Hospital was untouchable and unperceivable by any of the other hospitals we visited. The contribution in Michael's name is done so with the greatest level of appreciation."
- Caterina Sills, July 2003
|
|
|