Denver Health must be responsive to the ever-shifting landscape in today’s world of health care. When funding falls through for a critical community resource or new patient needs emerge due to changing economic conditions, our Safety Net Fund allows us broad latitude to support unforeseen emergencies in patient care, as well as urgent programming needs. These funds are critical in filling the gaps in services when all other means have been exhausted. They also provide critical start-up funds for innovative projects throughout the entire Denver Health system. In the past, the Safety Net Fund has paid for a wide range of expenses, including:

• Guardianships for patients who have become incapacitated and can’t make decisions regarding their own care but have no one else to assume this responsibility
• Translation of educational materials, consent papers and end-of-life directives for refugees who are patients in the Geriatric Department and aren’t literate in English
• Support for the outpatient high-risk clinic that sees Denver Health’s most chronic hospital users
• Music therapy and pet therapy to improve morale and aid recovery among hospitalized patients