Overview of the Organization: Ronald McDonald House

Although most people are familiar with McDonalds because of its burgers and fries, the Ronald McDonald House is the charitable, nonprofit arm of the organization. The Ronald McDonald House supports critically ill children and their families. According to its About Us section of its website, 90% of all childrens hospitals are adjacent to at least one RMH. Its charity programs also raise funds for services and programs to assist sick children and families, along with global learning centers and shelters for families which have been victimized by violence and abuse.

How the Organization Works

The Ronald McDonald organization thus has multiple functions. One is to offer houses to comfort and shelter families and children in a very direct fashion. But it also has a fundraising component for local, national, and even international outreach. The focus is upon children suffering from serious illnesses, but it also assists childrens families, and addresses childrens learning and security needs. The organization has been thanked and praised by families for offering a home away from home, enabling family members to escape the hospital environment or to avoid traveling long distances for treatment.

According to one beneficiary, who moved to a Ronald McDonald House when her son was born premature: I cant even imagine how we wouldve functioned in Winnipeg with five of us plus me being pregnant with my son and then, when he was born, having to go to the hospital numerous times a day to feed him (Graham). The staff helps attend to the familys needs and reduces the stress the family might feel about attending to basic tasks such as housework and preparing meals. Ronald McDonald Houses enable families to focus solely on getting their children well again, and also to care for one another during very difficult times. They offer a support network.

Scope of Care

It should be noted that Ronald McDonald Houses are not, in and of themselves, medical institutions. But they offer critical supportive functions as adjacent to hospitals. Learning programs in Australia, the Philippines, and Malta help children who are seriously ill remain current with their learning, and also allow students with special...

Corporations have long used philanthropy as a public relations vehicle, an easy, non-controversial way to deflect attention from bad practices. Even though many of the efforts undertaken by McDonalds are channeled to local Ronald McDonald Houses that have little connection with the actual corporations policy decisions, there is no question that the name of the house promotes a much more positive image of McDonalds that might exist otherwise. This has made McDonalds critics angry about the whitewashing of McDonalds image.

Thus, the best thing McDonalds could arguably do to improve the efforts of its charity would be to do better as a company to promote healthier eating habits, which might be a challenge, given its core product line. A final option might be to simply change the charitys name to something focused on the children the charity assists, rather than McDonalds, since McDonalds only provides 20% in direct revenue to support the charity (Shanker). The majority of the financial support comes from McDonalds consumers, and other corporate and individual donors.…