Charity Encourages Generous Donations - New Standard for the Industry?

This really happened.  The vignette I present now occurred 3 days before its posting on this site.  My good friend Bill invited me to a fundraising dinner to support a Jewish organization.  I declined the invitation, but told Bill that I would be pleased to make a donation to support a cause that was important to him.  I connected to the website which led visitors quickly to the Donate page.  Charitable enterprises want to make it as easy as possible for you express your generosity and separate you from your funds.  Haven’t you noticed that every museum visit leads to the gift shop? 

I quickly filled in the credit card information and then scrolled down and typed $50 in the Customized Donation window.  This box allowed donors to designate their own amount, bypassing the default listed uber high dollar amounts that appeared higher up on the page.  The entire process expended about 3 minutes and ended when I clicked on the Donate Now button.   It’s the same process that we all use to purchase items on line.

Immediately, I received an e-mail receipt, which I opened for no clear reason as I generally ignore these notifications.  At first glance, I noted a donation amount of $18,000 which, of course, was incorrect.  On closer inspection, as my pulse rate quickened, this is exactly what the receipt claimed was transacted. Most likely, I thought I must be suffering from some transient blurry vision from over-caffeination, a previously unknown complication. But, squinting failed to change the number.  I did not panic, because I am a medical professional, who is steeled to maintain my equipoise when unexpected turbulence confronts me.  This is when seasoned pros must let their training and muscle  memory kick in.  In other words, I panicked.  

At least they thanked me!

I called Visa, whom I regarded as culpable, or at least guilty of contributory negligence, by facilitating this fraudulent transaction.  After exposure to the highly personalized menu tree, and hitting the zero on the phone repeatedly until my index finger was nearly calloused, a human-sounding voice emerged that claimed to be emanating from an actual human.  I was grateful to have discovered an escape from the menu tree, a labyrinth that can keep clients and customers trapped for months or longer.  Most of these lost souls go mad simply from being forced to hear, ‘Please listen carefully as our options have changed’, at high volume and without pause.  Visa-man advised me that I had no recourse available with them; I needed to take it up with the charity.

A few nanoseconds later, I phoned the charity and immediately was greeted by a voice mail.  When would I hear back?  What if the call came while I was doing a colonoscopy?  Should I answer anyway?  (I was leaning 'yes' on this.) What if the religious charity didn’t consider my donation as a human error, but as a divine stroke for which I would be rewarded in the hereafter?  Would I risk selling my soul for a mere $18,000? (I was scared to lean yes on this one.)

In less time than it seemed, a rabbi called and promptly and courteously returned me to the status quo ante.  He made me whole.  How did this escapade happen?  He explained that the Donate page was defaulted to donate 18 grand, and unless this box is unchecked by the donor, this will be the amount transferred.   I congratulated the rabbi on having such an effective donation process, and he assured me with a laugh, that he would attend to the glitch. 

We have all clicked on the wrong box or sent a text message to an unintended recipient, which can result in amusing or serious consequences.   In this case, my ‘error’ wasn’t one of commission, but of omission.  I failed to ‘opt out’.

Physicians, at least honest ones, can relate to this anecdote.  In the electronic medical era, how many of us have placed an order on the wrong patient?  Wouldn’t it be a shame if a doctor ordered a colonoscopy on Bill by mistake?