Catholic Health Initiatives Presents $8 Million in Grants to Build Healthy Communities

Catholic Health Initiatives, the nation’s second-largest nonprofit health system, announced 43 grants totaling more than $8 million for a wide range of programs to help build healthy communities in the U.S. and around the world.

The grants are from CHI’s Mission and Ministry Fund, created when the organization was formed in 1996. During the past 19 years, the Fund has awarded 452 grants totaling more than $63 million.

Mission and Ministry Fund grants support innovative projects designed to improve the health of communities, often by serving disadvantaged individuals and populations. Applications may be submitted by CHI’s affiliated organizations, participating congregations and strategic partner organizations. All supported initiatives must meet an identified community need, invite collaboration with community partners, and be replicable in other communities.

“We’re always proud to present a new set of grants that address priority community health needs,” said Kevin E. Lofton, chief executive officer of CHI. “Our local organizations conduct Community Health Needs Assessments every three years, and some critical needs identified through the most recent assessments are effective care transitions for vulnerable populations; and more robust mental and behavioral health services. This year’s grants address these and a wide range of other health needs. They also continue our commitment to ending violence in the communities we serve and to supporting international ministry relationships that serve those who are vulnerable around the world.”

The 2015 Mission and Ministry Fund grants were presented to:

Centura Health and St. Anthony Health Foundation of Centura South State Region, Lakewood, Colo.
$138,085 for Helping Babies and Mothers Survive, Peru
Reduce mortality of mothers and babies in a remote region of Peru.

CHI Carrington Health, Carrington, N.D.
$135,039 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI St. Gabriel’s Health, Little Falls, Minn.
$73,623 for Live Longer, Live Better – Eat Smart
Expand St. Gabriel’s Live Better, Live Longer initiative to assess, coach, inspire and recommend changes to health and wellness for families and children.

CHI Franciscan Health, Tacoma, Wash.
$32,000 for Key Peninsula Healthy Community Coalition
Facilitate a coalition and create a community action plan using CHI’s Building a Healthy Community process.

$98,279 for Prevent-Avert-Respond: Pierce County Initiative to Reduce Mental Health Crises
Build a community collaboration to build and strengthen the mental health services continuum.

CHI Health, Omaha, Neb.
$104,000 for Health Advocates Program Develop a CHI pilot program to help low-income patients achieve and maintain health by addressing unmet social needs at two clinics that serve vulnerable populations.

$194,500 for Plan for Behavioral Health Services Create a network of community and clinical initiatives that will help individuals who have mental illness and provide preventive outreach, education and resources for people at risk.

$105,025 for Violence Prevention Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on youth dating violence.

CHI Health Good Samaritan, Kearney, Neb.
$250,536 over three years for HelpCare Clinic Support a safety net clinic being established by the hospital, clinically integrated network and community.

$334,092 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on youth violence.

CHI Health St. Elizabeth Foundation, Lincoln, Neb.
$21,858 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on violent crime committed by youth.

CHI Health St. Francis, Grand Island, Neb.
$145,360 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on youth gang violence.

CHI Lisbon Health, Lisbon, N.D.
$134,317 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI Memorial Health, Chattanooga, Tenn.
$57,350 for Healthy Kids at Ivy
Increase the overall health of students at a diverse high school through a holistic approach that includes more physical activity and knowledge of healthy nutrition and weight management.

CHI Mercy Health, Valley City, N.D.
$133,778 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI Mercy Hospital, Devils Lake, N.D.
$134,317 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI Mercy Medical Center, Williston, N.D.
$135,208 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI Oakes Hospital, Oakes, N.D.
$135,103 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI St. Joseph’s Health, Dickinson, N.D.
$133,049 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on intimate partner violence.

CHI St. Luke’s Health The Woodlands Hospital, The Woodlands, Texas
$20,750 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on local needs.

Dominican Sisters of Peace, Columbus, Ohio
$40,500 for Peace Center Pilot, New Orleans, La. Develop and launch programming at a newly created Peace Center in the Maryville-
Fontainebleau neighborhood of New Orleans, which is still recovering from the effects of Hurricane Katrina.

$52,804 for Kingston Neighborhood Youth Leadership Development Pilot, Kingston, Jamaica
Support youth leadership development, a youth center and job skills training.

Flaget Memorial Hospital, Bardstown, Ky.
$293,651 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on school-age bullying.

Highline Medical Center Foundation, Burien, Wash.
$1.2 million over three years for Health Connections: Care Navigation for Vulnerable Patients
Implement a care transition program for vulnerable, chronically ill, high service-utilizing patients.

Jewish Hospital, Shelbyville, Shelbyville, Ky.
$288,843 over three years for Violence Prevention

Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on school-age bullying.

KentuckyOne Health, Louisville, Ky.
$40,000 over two years for BOUNCE: Building Resilient Children and Families Address the health of children in vulnerable neighborhoods in Louisville by implementing an evidence-based trauma resiliency model with local public schools.

$206,116 over three years for LIFE: Living Independently in Full Existence, Belize City, Belize Meet the needs of vulnerable elderly residents of Belize City with a focus on social support, food access, housing, transportation and medical care.

Mercy Foundation, Roseburg, Ore.
$253,750 over three years for Teen Transitions Improve personal health outcomes of youth who are in foster care, homeless and/or identified at-risk, through increased access to social, life skills and health resources.

$282,773 over three years for Violence Prevention Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on child abuse.

Mercy Medical Center, Des Moines, Iowa
$738,691 over three years for Empowering Patients through Community Palliative Care Establish a community-based, comprehensive palliative care program to serve greater Des Moines and, through telehealth and educational support, 13 rural communities.

$313,314 over three years for Good Communication=Good Medicine: Building a Strong Community for Language Access Address health disparities caused by language barriers between individuals who are Limited English Proficient (LEP) and their health care providers.

$189,785 over three years for Violence Prevention Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on youth dating violence.

Mother of God Monastery, Watertown, S. D.
$68,895 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on human trafficking.

Penrose-St. Francis Foundation, Colorado Springs, Colo.
$341,542 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on youth violence.

Sisters of Mercy, West Midwest Community, Omaha, Neb.
$57,740 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on human trafficking.

Sisters of St. Francis Congregation of Our Lady of Lourdes, Sylvania, Ohio
$41,688 for Haiti Mission, Pestel Abriko Clinic
Expand the days of operation, purchase supplies, improve security and plumbing and install solar panels at a clinic in the Pestel region of Haiti.

St. Anthony Hospital, Pendleton, Ore.
$37,328 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on local needs.

St. Anthony North Health Foundation, Westminster, Colo.
$84,200 for Violence Prevention
Design and start-up of a violence prevention program focused on local needs.

St. Joseph Berea, Berea, Ky.
$254,294 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on school-age bullying.

St. Joseph Martin, Martin, Ky.
$178,242 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on school-age bullying.

St. Joseph Mount Sterling, Mount Sterling, Ky.
$295,003 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on school-age bullying.

St. Mary Corwin Health Foundation, Pueblo, Colo.
$83,670 for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on child abuse and neglect.

St. Thomas More Health Foundation, Canon City, Colo.
$201,831 over three years for Violence Prevention
Implementation of a violence prevention program focused on child abuse and neglect.

About Catholic Health Initiatives:
Catholic Health Initiatives, a nonprofit, faith-based health system formed in 1996 through the consolidation of four Catholic health systems, expresses its mission each day by creating and nurturing healthy communities in the hundreds of sites across the nation where it provides care. The nation’s second-largest nonprofit health system, Englewood, Colo.-based CHI operates in 19 states and comprises 102 hospitals, including four academic health centers and major teaching hospitals and 30 critical-access facilities; community health-services organizations; accredited nursing colleges; home-health agencies; and other facilities that span the inpatient and outpatient continuum of care. In fiscal year 2014, CHI provided $910 million in charity care and community benefit -- a nearly 20% increase over the previous year -- for programs and services for the poor, free clinics, education and research. Charity care and community benefit totaled more than $1.7 billion with the inclusion of the unpaid costs of Medicare. The health system, which generated revenues of almost $13.9 billion in fiscal year 2014, has total assets of $21.8 billion. Learn more at www.catholichealthinitiatives.org.