Wayne Memorial Hospital is changing the focus of its annual community grants program to expand access to automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, across the region.
Under the revised program, the hospital will donate AEDs directly to eligible organizations within the Wayne Memorial Health System service area. The initiative replaces the traditional model of awarding mini-grants for healthcare services, disease prevention and wellness programs.
Wayne Memorial Hospital has tasked the Wayne Memorial Health Foundation with collecting and evaluating applications for the program. The foundation’s Community Grants Committee will review requests and serve as the allocations group.
Hospital officials said the new approach is intended to prioritize immediate, life-saving measures by placing critical cardiac emergency equipment directly into community settings.
Eligible nonprofits, community centers and local organizations are invited to submit a letter of request by Aug. 15.
Applications should include the organization’s full legal name, the physical address where the AED will be installed, a brief description of the organization’s primary function or community role, and an estimate of the number of people served annually.
Requests may be mailed to Wayne Memorial Health Foundation, c/o WMH Community Relations, 601 Park St., Honesdale, PA 18431, or submitted by email to allenma@wmh.org.
By increasing the availability of AEDs throughout the region, Wayne Memorial Hospital said in a statement it aims to improve the overall health status of the communities served by the health system.