MCG wins fundraising bout

In light of current economic trends, United Way of the CSRA officials wanted to find new ways to boost their annual fundraising campaign and created the first hospital competition.

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"It was a fun way since we are fairly competitive with other hospitals," said Rumame Samuels, employee campaign manager for MCG Health Inc., which was named the overall winner at the United Way's annual meeting Feb. 24 at Augusta Marriott Hotel and Suites.

Announced in October, the competition pitted Doctors Hospital, Medical College of Georgia Hospital and University Hospital against each other. The campaign netted more than $220,000 for the United Way and its more than 60 health and human service programs. The total gift from MCG was more than $101,000, which included a $10,000 corporate gift.

"Our area hospitals are in the business of caring for our citizens when they have an acute health need, and since the United Way is in the business of caring for our citizens' health and human service needs all year long, we thought the hospital competition was a great way to engage the hospitals in a 'year round' opportunity to care for our citizens, as well, and MCG Health led the way in responding with great enthusiasm," Mark Maund, the United Way's 2009 board chairman, wrote in an e-mail.

MCG played on that competitive spirit in soliciting employee donations.

"They developed an internal competition between departments, hosted a presentation to senior level management, used the organization's marketing resources to update employees on the campaign's progress, allowed speakers into department meetings and held an agency fair which coincided with a hot dog/pizza sale," according to a news release from the United Way.

United Way officials presented MCG with a trophy. There were two other components to the competition. Doctors Hospital won both the per capita award for largest increase in per capita giving and the leadership award for the largest increase in leadership giving.