Quality Health Foundation Awards Grants

Local charitable organizations receive funds to improve healthcare

EASTON, Md., June 18, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Quality Health Foundation (QHF), the charitable branch of Quality Health Strategies, recently awarded grants totaling $366,000 to ten organizations in Maryland and the District of Columbia that support local healthcare-related quality improvement efforts.  

Funding decisions for the 2012-2013 grants, which range from $20,000 to $50,000, were determined by a project's potential to impact access to quality healthcare and human services, particularly among underserved populations. This year's awardees were selected from approximately 80 charitable, not-for-profit applicants.

"We are pleased to single out these organizations for their important quality improvement initiatives," said Brenda Crabbs, Chair of the Quality Health Foundation Board of Directors. "Their work is perfectly aligned with our mission to improve the health status of individuals and communities. Although the amounts may seem modest, the impact can be great for these ten charitable organizations."

A grant of $50,000 to Access Carroll, Inc., a full-time safety-net provider in Carroll County, will support costs for a medication coordinator, who will work to provide meds at no-cost to low-income and uninsured residents with chronic diseases. During this grant cycle alone, this individual will secure more than $1.1 million in medications from pharmaceutical companies. 

In the District of Columbia, the Community of Hope's Case Management Program was awarded $30,000, which will help 100 people manage their chronic conditions and life challenges better. This year the program will be expanded to include group educational sessions. 

For All Seasons, Inc. offers mental health treatment and supportive services to residents of the Mid-Shore through a 24/7 hotline and strategically located offices.  A grant of $36,000 will help provide initial mental health evaluations and 435 follow-up treatment sessions to 87 uninsured clients.

For Help and Outreach Point of Entry in Salisbury, Maryland, $50,000 will support the Health Outreach Program for approximately 2,500 to 3,000 people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. The organization attends to the social and medical needs of their clients, and operates a clinic that provides flu shots, tuberculosis testing, and blood pressure screening.

Since 1985, Hospice of Queen Anne's has been helping people through the challenges of living with a terminal illness or recovering from the loss of a loved one. A grant of $25,000 will help expand the Bereavement Program, which includes a camp for children who have lost a parent or sibling, as well as special groups for bereaved parents and those bereaved through suicide. These services will be provided to approximately 450 Queen Anne's residents.

The Maryland Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped will receive $50,000 to support the Donated Dental Services Program, which provides pro bono dental care for indigent, disabled Maryland residents. Approximately 660 patients will receive dental care worth more than a million dollars during the grant program. Since the foundation's inception in 1988, volunteer dentists and laboratories have provided more than $13.5 million in dental services to 7,860 disabled Maryland residents.

A grant of $30,000 to Shepherd's Clinic will support the salary of a care coordination specialist for the clinic's Joy Wellness Center.  The volunteer-driven Shepherd's Clinic provides Baltimore's uninsured people with comprehensive health care, including cardiology, dermatology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, gynecology, diabetic nutrition, internal medicine, physical therapy, podiatry and psychiatric care. At the wellness center, volunteers provide services, including yoga, massage therapy, nutrition education, acupuncture, as well as smoking cessation and wellness counseling. This year, Shepherd's Clinic is expected to treat approximately 3,500 people in more than 10,000 patient visits.

The University of Maryland Medical System Foundation will receive $50,000 to support the Children's Breathmobile Program, which provides free preventive care to underserved children in Baltimore and surrounding communities via a mobile asthma clinic. The program strives to improve the health and quality of life for these children by increasing their adherence to preventive asthma medication regimens and decreasing asthma-related Emergency Room visits, hospitalizations and missed school days.  

William Hill Manor, a continuing care retirement community in Easton with 275 residents, offers on-site residential living, assisted living, specialized dementia care and skilled nursing care.  A $25,000 grant will help purchase innovative computer technology that will help improve the lives of seniors as they confront the limitations and challenges of chronic and progressive conditions.

The mission of Women Supporting Women is to provide awareness, education and support to all those affected by breast cancer on the Delmarva Peninsula. A grant of $20,000 will increase the capacity to provide simplified educational materials, tote bag kits and other support to 350 newly diagnosed patients and 125 patients who are currently receiving treatment.

Since 2006, Quality Health Foundation has awarded grants totaling more than $2.2 million to 45 organizations in Maryland and the District of Columbia.

About Quality Health Foundation

Quality Health Foundation, the mission arm of Quality Health Strategies, is a national not-for-profit organization that provides grants to charitable and not-for-profit organizations in Maryland and the District of Columbia toward projects that help improve the healthcare and human services for individuals and communities. For more information, visit www.qualityhealthfoundation.org/.

SOURCE Quality Health Strategies