Federal privacy regulations have in recent years made it hard for hospital fund raisers to get information about patients they want to solicit.

For example, they can’t find out that a wealthy person was recently treated for heart disease and then send a solicitation for a cardiac-care center.

But Sharp HealthCare Foundation, in San Diego, has found a way to get around the restrictions, often persuading patients to become donors before they e leave the hospital: It encourages patients to donate money to honor a “Guardian Angel,” anyone at the hospital who was particularly helpful during their stay.

Any doctor, nurse, or other employee chosen by a patient receives a “Guardian Angel” pin; donors are given a picture of the worker receiving the pin. In less than three years, the effort has produced nearly 4,000 gifts totaling more than $1-million, says Bill Littlejohn, the foundation’s chief executive.

Less important than the amount raised is the fact that the hospital has found a ready source of new donors, he says. “We could have a $100 donor be the next million-dollar donor.”

Already, Mr. Littlejohn notes, the hospital has found that donors who honor hospital workers are happy to make repeat gifts. Last month, the hospital received 1,000 donations in response to a mailing to those donors.

The pins have had some unexpected side benefits: A hospital booklet listing all the medical and other staff members who received pins has made people more conscious of their interactions with patients, Mr. Littlejohn says. And, he adds, the physicians who get multiple pins may be prompting some soul-searching among doctors who haven’t earned any.