Gratitude-inspired philanthropy has evolved over the past decade, and like other philanthropy efforts, it has begun to take a more digital approach that includes analytics and artificial intelligence  

But particularly when it comes to grateful patients and families, the best prospective philanthropic partners are still often identified when they express gratitude to direct caregivers. Because of this, it’s important for philanthropy professionals to know how to coach physicians and other healthcare professionals to identify and engage with potential grateful patients and families.  

As I’m sure you know, inviting a philanthropic investment isn't part of the role that physicians should play. Believing they are expected to “raise money” is the number-one reason healthcare professionals avoid getting involved in grateful patient philanthropy efforts. That’s why it’s important to outline upfront what their role is, and what it isn’t.  

The role of the healthcare professional is to identify gratitude, accept it, and then connect the grateful patient or family to the philanthropy team. It is the philanthropy professional’s role to triage that gratitude and ensure that the patient and/or family has had an appropriate opportunity to express their gratitude in a way that is meaningful.   

Most of the time, when a physician hears that they are only expected to identify, accept, and connect grateful patients with the philanthropy team, and not to discuss anything related to a philanthropic investment, it relieves the tension and hesitancy immediately. 

Encourage Them Not to Dismiss Expressions of Gratitude 

A patient or family who shows gratitude is not necessarily a prospective philanthropic partner. In moments of gratitude, it is important never to be transactional. Instead, healthcare professionals should be taught to focus on ensuring that the gratitude has been triaged appropriately. This process allows possible philanthropic investment discussions to happen most organically.  
 
Most often, patients and families will express gratitude through simple words to a care team member, such as, “Thank you so much for all you did for me/my family member.” 

The appropriate response for the caregiver is, “It is an honor to be part of your care team. Thank you for entrusting us with your care. May I introduce you to my colleague in philanthropy who works with patients and families to ensure that you have had an opportunity to express your gratitude in a meaningful way?” 

Remind Them That Patients Want to Express Gratitude 

Encourage caregivers to specifically state that the introduction to a philanthropy professional is not about a charitable gift; rather, it is at that moment about ensuring that the patient and/or family has had an opportunity to express their gratitude in a way that is meaningful to them.  

This is where the concept of “triaging gratitude” is important. Because care team members are busy and often feel overworked, they are naturally anxious to move on to the next patient who needs assistance. But it’s important to remind caregivers that grateful patients and families often want to express gratitude, and they deserve the opportunity to do so. Introducing (never “referring”) a philanthropy colleague will result in a professional taking responsibility for ensuring that the patient/family’s wishes are fully respected, and that their gratitude has been appropriately triaged.  
 
A final, but important, reminder for physicians is that, for many patients and families, making a philanthropic investment to advance the work of the care team for whom they are grateful is an important part of the healing process beyond verbally expressing gratitude to them. Particularly in healthcare, people are often highly motivated to invest through philanthropy to advance the work of care teams—as opposed to simply giving to a hospital or healthcare organization. Always focus on inviting philanthropic investments in the work of care teams instead of asking for philanthropic gifts to benefit the hospital.