Checks were handed out Monday to three local organizations
Trinity Health System announced the recipients of the CommonSpirit Health Community Health Improvement Grants Monday morning in a ceremony held at Scaffidi’s Restaurant & Tavern.
A total of $105,000 was distributed among the following three well-known and highly regarded community organizations:
Ohio Valley Health Center (Free to be Healthy 3.0) – $42,500 Ohio Valley Youth Network (After-School Program) – $20,000 Urban Mission Ministries (Healthy Food for All) – $42,500 OVHC will use grant to fund Free to be Healthy 3.0
Ohio Valley Health Center (OVHC) received $42,500 to support Free To Be Healthy 3.0, which aims to improve measures (blood sugar, A1C, blood pressure, lipid panel) at baseline among 75 marginalized, underinsured, and uninsured patients with pre-diabetes, diabetes, and hypertension. These patients’ care will be managed by primary care nurse practitioners in a free clinic setting every three months for one year.
According to OVHC, “Jefferson County has [seen] a further decline in health outcomes moving from 70 to 75 out of 88 counties in Ohio with a prevalence rate of 15 percent for diabetes.”
100 percent of patients will benefit from at least one Free To Be Healthy 3.0 service, the organization said.
The original iteration of Free To Be Healthy (FTBH) began in 2013 with funding from Novo Nordisk and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Its focus was on diabetes. FTBH 2.0 began in 2021 and focused on diabetes and hypertension. FTBH
2.0 was sustained with small funding sources and expanded to include new providers. FTBH 3.0 will focus on diabetes, hypertension, and social determinants of health.
OVYN will use grant to fund its after-school programs
The Ohio Valley Youth Network (OVYN) serves Steubenville, Ohio, and its surrounding areas. The grant will provide $20,000 to help fund its after-school programs, which consist of over 60 classes, including age-appropriate health-promoting activities, such as cooking classes to reinforce proper diet and nutrition, music, dance and drama opportunities, physical fitness activities, and vocational training classes that include entrepreneurship, carpentry, and cosmetology.
Improved physical and mental wellness, healthy lifestyle choices, and a reduction of at-risk behaviors are expected outcomes.
According to OVYN, the organization “serves at-risk youth at or below the poverty line. Of the youth who attend the after-school, food, and summer programs, 80 percent are African-American, 15 percent are white non-Hispanic, 3 percent are Asian-Americans, and 2 percent are Hispanic. The median income for a household in the city is $26,516. The per capita income for the city is $17,830.
20.4 percent of the population are below the poverty line, including 29.2 percent of those under the age of 18. The at-risk youth served are often victims of abuse, neglect, homelessness, and crime.”
Urban Mission will use grant to support Healthy Food for All
Urban Mission Ministries is a faith-based organization that has served the Ohio Valley since 1959. The Urban Mission utilizes food, shelter, and other essential services as a tool to build trust, eliminate barriers, and bring healing and restoration for individuals and families in need.
According to the organization, “We also provide opportunities for service, education, and hands-on training, and we collaborate on community development and economic initiatives to bring transformational change to our community.”
The grant will provide $42,500 for Urban Mission MInistries’ Healthy Food for All program, which will address health equity for the low-income population of the Ohio Valley by providing food-insecure households with access to healthy food, nutrition education, health screenings, and supportive services.
Urban Mission, in partnership with local agencies, will collaborate to change health behaviors among participants by making information, healthy food, and supportive services more accessible.
“In turn, we anticipate greater community engagement and better health outcomes among those served,” the organization said.
Community Health Improvement Grants were first announced in July
Trinity Health System first announced the CommonSpirit Health Community Health Improvement Grants program in July of 2023 after examining the findings from a recent community needs assessment.
The CommonSpirit Health Community Health Improvement Grants program is one way Trinity Health System is working with others to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable and underserved populations in the communities we serve.
Collaborating 501(c)3 non-profit organizations apply to receive grant funds from the CommonSpirit network of hospitals to address significant issues in community health needs assessments. These can include improving access to health care, mental health, social services, health education, safe shelter and housing, food, violence prevention, and more.
The grant program helps to improve community health and health equity and enhance local service systems via restricted charitable contributions for defined projects.
The Community Health Improvement Grants are offered through CommonSpirit Health, Trinity Health System’s parent company. More about the program can be found here.
If your news organization would like to interview the grant recipients and learn more about their community programs, please contact Laurie Labishak, grant coordinator, via the phone number and email address in the header of this press release.
