Oshkosh neurosurgeon donates $2.5 million to Mercy Health Foundation

03 / 21 / 2007

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Pam Koehler-Zastrow, Media Relations
Affinity Health System
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OSHKOSH, Wis. – Dr. Theresa Cheng, who has a passion for missionary work and believes strongly that everyone deserves the best medical treatment regardless of ability to pay, is donating $2.5 million to the Mercy Health Foundation to create the Dr. Theresa M. Cheng Endowment for Medical Excellence and Compassion.

The gift by Cheng, a neurosurgeon at Affinity Mercy Medical Center, is the largest single donation to the Mercy Health Foundation to date. Cheng announced the gift at a gathering of friends, family and colleagues Wednesday.

The purpose of the fund will be to:

  • Establish a medical mission outreach program that serves needy people in and out of the country.
  • Facilitate the growth and development of the neurosurgery program at Affinity Mercy Medical Center.
  • Support, build and retain a competent, loyal neurosurgery support team.
  • Fulfill Cheng’s broader philanthropy interests within Affinity Mercy Medical Center and support health outreach projects that are consistent with Affinity priorities and Catholic values.

“Mission service is a very important component of the gift,” Cheng says. “I have always believed that patients should be treated based upon their needs, rather than how much they can afford.”

Cheng’s goal is to “ultimately remove the financial burden of seeking the best care possible and make access to neurosurgical care equal across all socioeconomic classes,” she says. “I would like to bring patients in from not only Northeast Wisconsin, but also from around the nation as well as from around the world.”

Additionally, Cheng would like to share her neurosurgical techniques with physicians from Third World countries.

Another aspect of Cheng’s gift to the Mercy Health Foundation is to facilitate the growth and development of the neurosurgery program at Affinity Mercy Medical Center, and to recruit and retain a loyal neurosurgery support team.

“My vision for the neurosurgery program at Mercy remains to continue to be the leader in compassionate, cost-effective, state-of-the-art neurosurgical care while having fun in the process,” Cheng says.

“I see the people that work on the neurosurgery team as our most important asset. I’d like to invest more into building not only their careers, but them as people.”

Cheng, a Neenah native, joined Affinity in 2002 to start the neurosurgery department at Affinity Mercy Medical Center. In 2006, Affinity Mercy Medical Center was named the top hospital in the state, and among the top 5 percent in the nation, for spine surgery, joint replacement and total orthopaedics, according to HealthGrades. Just recently, Cheng was named one of the country’s top surgeons by the Consumers’ Research Council of America.

“The challenge we face in neurosurgery is to develop innovative strategies to grow with changes,” Cheng says. “Neurosurgery is the ‘last frontier’ and the future is exciting. I believe that if we do these things effectively, the sky is the limit.”

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For the Editor:
Affinity Health System, a Catholic mission-oriented regional health care network, is a partnership of Ministry Health Care and Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare. Affinity Health System is the Fox Valley’s third largest employer, according to the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce & Industry, and is ranked 24 among the top 100 integrated health care networks nationwide (Verispan 2008). Both St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton and Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh rank among the top 1 percent among hospitals nationwide in terms of quality and efficiency, as determined by the 2007 Premier | CareScience Select practice National Quality Award. Network Health Plan has achieved Excellent accreditation status from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), the highest possible level. It is ranked 37th among the 250 rated health plans in the nation in terms of customer satisfaction and clinical performance, according to the U.S. News and World Report/NCQA Best Health Plans in America listing. Members of Affinity include Mercy Medical Center and Mercy Health Foundation, Oshkosh; St. Elizabeth Hospital and the St. Elizabeth Hospital Community Foundation, Appleton; Affinity Medical Group, a regional network of 23 family practice and specialty clinics in 13 communities; Calumet Medical Center, Chilton; Network Health Plan, Menasha; and Affinity Occupational Health.