News

Contact: Lauren Brendel, M.S.

BOZEMAN, MT [September 28, 2020]—Bozeman Health has announced plans to continue expansion of locally available pediatric specialty medicine and behavioral health services, made possible by a charitable gift to Bozeman Health Foundation of $4 million from local residents Tim and Carmen Sheehy. This new $4 million contribution is in addition to a $200,000 gift made earlier this year by the family in support of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), set to open later this fall at Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital.

This generous donation is the largest gift received in Bozeman Health Foundation’s history and will establish the Sheehy Center of Pediatric Excellence (SCOPE) at Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital. SCOPE is initially intended to provide for two new pediatric medical specialties and enhanced pediatric and adolescent mental health services, all for the benefit of local and regional patients and their families. The Sheehy’s gift will also fund the eventual design and renovation of existing space at Deaconess Hospital, creating a holistic healing and wellness lobby for young patients needing care. The Sheehy’s hope is that SCOPE will create a nationally renowned pediatric program that sets a new standard in providing integrated care across all disciplines. They see this new gift as enabling the first step toward realizing that vision.

“As parents, Carmen and I have been blessed with four children who are thriving and healthy, and we don’t take that good fortune for granted. We’ve watched closely as several of our friends, employees and neighbors have endured lengthy travel and all the stresses that come with it to provide their children with the care they need far from home,” Tim shared during a small, outdoor reception with health system and foundation board members last week.

“For us, this is more than a charitable donation; it is an investment in the foundation of our community,” Tim continued. “Bozeman leads in so many ways, from technology to recreation to outdoor gear. We want to inspire the same level excellence in pediatric care and reduce the frequency with which we need to send our children to cities like Denver, Seattle or Minneapolis. Our family’s enterprise has been successful in part due to our amazing Bozeman community and we are committed to reinvesting that success back into the valley. We have the utmost confidence in Bozeman Health to deliver on our shared vision of pediatric excellence in Bozeman.”

Specifically, Tim and Carmen’s generosity will fund specialty programs currently unavailable in the region in pediatric cardiology and pediatric general surgery, with an initial focus on outpatient care. New medical directorships in each of these areas will help Bozeman Health serve NICU, pediatric, and adolescent patients in unprecedented and compassionate ways.

Funding for these specialty programs will cover the combination of compensation for physicians and dedicated pediatric trained staff, essential equipment and technology, and innovation funds under the direction of each medical director to help start and enhance their respective pediatric medicine programs.

Building on recent improvements to locally available behavioral health services, this gift will also enable Bozeman Health to initiate, grow, and staff new maternal and post-partum, pediatric and adolescent mental health programs. In early 2018, Bozeman Health began integrating essential behavioral health services within its primary care clinics and it seeks to embed these same services more deeply into its pediatric clinics, NICU setting, and Family Birth Center programs to address substance misuse, post-partum depression, and mental health needs of our youngest and most fragile patients.

As early as 2023, Bozeman Health will use a portion of the Sheehy’s gift to support the design and creation of an innovative pediatric and adolescent wellness space located at Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital, similar to the holistic healing lobby at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Maryland. The Sheehy’s generosity will allow Bozeman Health to bring unique therapeutic programs and holistic services together in an innovative common area.

Finally, this gift includes funds to provide for ongoing program sustainability and additional innovation over the next five years. Even as our pediatric specialty and behavioral health programs reach a point where their patient volumes and revenues cover core costs, finding the resources to continually innovate for the benefit of patients and their families can be challenging. The sustainability and innovation funds being provided by the Sheehy family in pediatric cardiology, pediatric surgery, and mental health services will allow our clinical leaders to be constantly anticipating and adapting to what’s needed next.

“Bozeman Health’s care team strives every day to deliver on our mission, and to innovate and compassionately serve those who need us most, including our communities’ children. I know I speak for us all when I share my profound thanks to Tim, Carmen, and the Sheehy family for this transformative generosity,” said John Hill, president and CEO of Bozeman Health. “We live in a remarkable community and we’re inspired by Tim and Carmen’s vision and honored by the trust they have placed in us as their local healthcare partner.”

Recruitment for high quality medical directors and behavioral health specialists will begin immediately, with the hope that patients and families will begin to benefit from these new programs as early as fall 2021.