As patients recover from open-heart surgery at Charlton Memorial Hospital, they are each gifted a stuffed heart-shaped pillow to help them on their healing journey.

“Although they are a thoughtful gift, these pillows provide much more than a comforting touch. In the weeks after surgery, they provide support to our patients when they are coughing and moving around. They are also a huge help with pain-relief as patients can hug them to their chests to apply pressure as they heal,” said Holly Marcello, Manager of Patient Care on the cardiovascular step-down unit at Charlton Memorial.

When this tradition first started, groups of local volunteers would handmake each of the pillows for our patients. However, as our program at Southcoast Health Heart & Vascular continues to grow, we are now performing over 300 open-heart cases a year.

To help keep up with the patient volume, Robinson+Cole generously stepped in to help the volunteers by donating additional pillows and patient comfort items to the cardiovascular intensive care and cardiovascular step-down units.

“We know how important it is to have world-class heart and vascular services like this in the community, and we are honored to be a part of each patient’s recovery journey,” said Lisa Boyle, Partner at Robinson+Cole.

This collaborative effort highlights the powerful impact of community involvement in healthcare. We are so thankful for our generous volunteers and Robinson+Cole for their ongoing dedication to ensuring that each patient has a heartfelt gift to go home with.

To learn more about how to donate to Southcoast Health Heart & Vascular or volunteer please visit, Philanthropy in Fall River, New Bedford & Wareham MA (southcoast.org).