Robert R. Harding, MD,
Riverside Medical Group
At a time of razor-thin healthcare margins, the Riverside Foundation aims to fill gaps in funding to give local patients, providers and facilities the resources they need to receive and deliver superior care.
The 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1999, has assisted patients with medication, transportation and durable medical equipment costs while investing in healthcare scholarships; provided technology enhancements in hospitals and community practices; and supported programs such as cancer care, neurosciences, healthy aging, hospice and simulation lab training.
Operating with a simple slogan – Support Remarkable – the Foundation’s goal is to help Riverside Health System maintain a strong presence throughout its service area and fulfill its mission: “To care for others as we would care for those we love.”
“The Foundation helps take us from ‘good’ to ‘great,’” says Robert R. Harding, MD, a hospitalist and regular donor. “It supports efforts that we know will improve our patients’ lives and increase the quality of our services for years to come, and it also helps us attract the best physicians and clinicians.”
In 2022, more than 2,000 donors contributed nearly $6.8 million to the Foundation, about $4 million of which went to areas of greatest need. The rest of the philanthropic dollars and gifts-in-kind were directed into specific categories.
For example, one 2022 initiative supplied blood pressure monitors, scales and weekly pill dispensers to congestive heart failure patients so they could better manage their disease at home, thereby lowering the risk of hospital readmission.
Former patients and their families have been frequent contributors to the Foundation, using it as a way to express gratitude for the medical care, education and emotional support that they have received.
One regular focus is aid for students at Riverside College of Health Careers (RCHC), who often stay in the region to practice. The Foundation awarded over $400,000 in scholarships in 2022 and purchased new wound assessment simulation equipment; next up is a high-tech mannequin arm that can simulate pulses, laboratory draws, blood pressure and seizure activity.
Dr. Harding and his wife, Nancy, have endowed a nursing scholarship at RCHC after Dr. Harding’s 35-year medical career taught him the importance of having high-quality team members around him.
“It’s how good WE are, not how good I am, and nurses are the bedrock of good medicine,” he notes. “As physicians, I think we all need to support initiatives outside of our own medical practice. The Foundation has been a great partner.”
The Foundation’s fundraising roots trace back to the start of Riverside’s history. In 1910, W.S. Hopson, MD, and shipyard president Walter Post rallied the community to raise $30,000 in just two weeks to build a much-needed new hospital with 50 beds.
“It’s always been true that every member of our community should have access to world-class care,” Dr. Harding says. “We don’t want to meet minimum standards – we want to be remarkable.”
For more information, visit riversideonline.com/foundation, email riversidefoundation@rivhs.com, or call (757) 234-8740.
