Workforce development offers new beginnings
Banner helps current employees and youth grow in their health care careers

The World Health Organization estimates a projected shortfall of 10 million health workers by 2030. While the shortage is most acute in low- and lower-middle income countries, health care organizations and systems throughout the world are facing challenges in the education, employment, deployment, retention, and performance of their workforce.

A talented, engaged, and inclusive workforce is critical to delivering exceptional patient care, and Banner Health has made it a priority to support employees—professionally, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Banner is committed to engaging and growing our most valuable resource—our workforce—by offering opportunities for ongoing education, training, reskilling, professional development, mentorships, and career growth, plus resources to support employees’ physical and mental well-being.

Philanthropic investment from donors and community partners is critical to these initiatives, as they fall outside the traditional model of care delivery and reimbursement. Recently, generous donors including The Tony and Milena Astorga Foundation and Taco Bell Foundation have made this deepening of Banner’s bench of talent a priority with their gifts.

“By strategically investing in workforce development, you have the opportunity to change lives and give hope to our current and future team members,” says Marea Bryson, Senior Director of Talent Management.

Banner Alzheimer’s Institute receives prestigious grant to advance research

NOMIS, a private Swiss foundation that supports insight-driven scientific endeavors across all disciplines, recently awarded the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute a $2 million grant, with an additional $1 million forthcoming upon achievement of certain benchmarks. The funds will allow BAI and its partners to continue their groundbreaking research that began in 2012 in Antioquia, Colombia to find an effective prevention for Alzheimer’s disease.

In collaboration with the University of Antioquia in Colombia, Roche, and the National Institute on Aging, investigators from BAI’s Alzheimer’s Prevention Initiative will be able to continue their study of and support for members of the world’s largest early-onset, autosomal-dominant Alzheimer’s disease kindred. The family in Colombia includes 6,000 descendants from a common ancestor—1,200 of whom carry a gene that causes them to develop Alzheimer’s disease and become cognitive impaired at the average age of 44.

New lounge for teenage cancer patients opens at Diamond Children’s in Tucson
Dedicated space honors the memory of 18-year-old cancer patient Kelsey Luria

Thanks to a generous financial gift from the Bald Beauties Project® to the Banner Health Foundation, a new Teen Lounge has opened at Diamond Children’s Medical Center, providing a visually appealing and cozy space for teens who are undergoing cancer treatment.

Diamond Children’s treats more than 100 teens each year who are undergoing cancer treatment. One of those teens was 18-year-old Kelsey Luria, who died on April 18, 2015, after a 5 ½ month battle with acute myeloid leukemia, a rare bone marrow cancer. Her parents, Maya and Michael Luria, intimately know the impact on teenagers undergoing months of treatment in a hospital. They decided to honor their daughter’s memory and enrich the lives of other teens fighting cancer by creating the Bald Beauties Project® Teen Lounge at Diamond Children’s.

Upcoming Activities & Announcements

Breathe, Balance and Brunch: Women’s Wellness Retreat 2024

Take your self-care routine to a new level at the 3rd annual Women’s Wellness Retreat, presented by WISH. Treat your body and mind to curated experiences designed to promote health and well-being, personal growth, mindfulness, and intentional living. There will also be presentations on skin cancer prevention, sports medicine for active lifestyles, women’s sexual health, and more!

◦ Date: Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
◦ Location: Banner Sports Medicine Scottsdale
◦ Attire: Athletic leisure
◦ Tickets:give.bannerhealth.com/retreat

Proceeds benefit WISH.

Tables, tickets and sponsorships now available

The 9th annual Pulse of the City Soiree will be a night to remember at the Omni Scottsdale Resort and at Montelucia on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. Proceeds will benefit pediatric cancer care and research at Banner Children’s medical centers in Arizona.

This year’s theme, “Heart of the Garden,” will celebrate Banner Children’s dedication to helping children battling cancer—often the most fragile seeds in the garden of life—to bloom and grow up healthy and strong. The Presenting, Champion and Hope Sponsor levels are already sold out, so be sure to reserve your table package early!

Brittney Griner hosts toy drive for Banner Children’s

Thank you to Brittney Griner of the Phoenix Mercury for hosting a toy drive for our youngest patients! Fans can donate new, packaged toys and games for kids of all ages during any weekend home game at Footprint Arena–all season long.

Donations will stock the Toy Closets at Banner Children’s at Desert, Banner Children’s at Thunderbird, and Diamond Children’s Medical Center, where brave young patients visit and choose an item to keep after undergoing procedures and treatments. Donate the next time you go support the Mercury!

Banner Health Foundation and Banner Alzheimer’s Foundation work closely with grateful patients, generous families, businesses, and community supporters to advance the nonprofit mission of Banner Health. Funds are invested locally in our hospitals and medical centers, patient care programs, family and community services, medical education, and research initiatives.

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