NEW YORK—January 28, 2020—From cancer screenings to surgeries, women’s health to hospice care, MercyOne Medical Centers provide an essential service to their local communities. The medical centers’ origins date back to 1890’s, when the Sisters of Mercy traveled from Dublin, Ireland to the United States with the dream of building a hospital to provide healing and support to those in need. Today, “MercyOne Central Iowa operates four not-for-profit, Catholic medical centers, as well as two specialty hospitals, providing a total of 965 licensed beds” (MercyOne).
And they need children’s books.
In early January 2020, MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center began gaining attention online due to a photo taken in their Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, or NICU.
“Cassie Baker took the photo of her 13-month-old daughter Parker who was receiving ECMO treatment and Dane Pratt, who is a cardiovascular perfusionist. It shows Pratt reading to Parker from The Little Engine that Could, a book Pratt received from his grandmother” (MercyOne).
It turns out that Dane Pratt had been reading to many of his young patients in addition to providing their cardiovascular care. Pratt’s actions remind us of just how valuable it is to pair the treatment of physical ailments with personalized care and emotional healing.
After the story was picked up by news outlets, Pratt urged those reading and sharing the story to donate books to the MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center, to ensure that there were more than enough books for young patients.
At Pratt’s call to action, Morgan James Book Publishing will be donating copies of 37 various titles from our Children’s Catalog to MercyOne Medical Centers, including Mermaids on Mars, Stranded in a Snowstorm, The Adventures Of Andy Ant, and Pippin No Lickin’. We encourage other publishers, industry professionals, authors, and individuals to consider the impact it can make on the lives of the young patients should they do the same.
If you would like to donate books to MercyOne Medical Centers, please send them to:
MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center
1111 6th Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50314
About Morgan James Publishing: Morgan James publishes trade quality titles designed to educate, encourage, inspire, or entertain readers with current, consistent, relevant topics that are available everywhere books are sold. www.MorganJamesPublishing.com
Sources:
https://www.mercyone.org/desmoines/about-us/
https://www.mercyone.org/desmoines/about-us/news-releases/dane-pratt
https://www.kcci.com/article/heartwarming-story-leads-to-need-for-new-book-donations/30454019#
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