Northwestern Medicine awards $1.7 million in grants to community partners
MCHENRY COUNTY — Northwestern Medicine, which serves patients across more than 10,000 square miles of Northern Illinois, stated that to better address the diverse needs of individual communities, Northwestern Memorial HealthCare located in Chicago, launched a grant initiative to highlight disparities found within local Community Health Needs Assessments.
Their funding initiative, which is one facet of Northwestern Medicine’s community giving campaign, offered grants to local agencies supporting specific health and wellness projects.
As of current, Northwestern Medicine has awarded more than $1.7 million to 49 organizations that offer a wide range of services including housing, nutritional needs, transportation, childcare, mental health, and primary care.
“Northwestern Medicine is committed to making our community as healthy as it can be,” said Senior Vice President of Northwestern Memorial HealthCare Posh Charles. “This initiative, which is just one-way Northwestern Medicine contributes to the community, enhances our ability to provide highly targeted support to partners addressing priority health concerns in their individual locales.”
In the fiscal year 2021, Northwestern Memorial HealthCare provided more than $1.14 billion in community benefits including charity care and the unreimbursed costs incurred caring for Medicaid and Medicare patients, training tomorrow’s health care workforce, conducting medical research, and other community benefits that help preserve access to care for the residents of Chicago, its suburbs, and Northern Illinois.
“The beneficiaries of the community grants range in size and scope from the YMCA of Metro Chicago to the Oak Forest Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, an organization that provides fully furnished twin beds for children who sleep on [the] floor, couches, and other situations without beds,” stated Northwestern Medicine.
As for what agencies benefited from the grants in McHenry County, they include Family Health Partnership Clinic, Harvard Community Senior Center, Home of the Sparrow, Inc., New Directions Addiction Recovery Services, and Turning Point, Inc.
“Our goal is to collaborate and support local agencies to address healthcare disparities across all socioeconomic backgrounds,” explained Charles. “We sought out organizations that are making a difference by removing barriers to better health.”
Funding for The Family Health Partnership Clinic in Crystal Lake will benefit low-income, medically underserved, and uninsured residents of McHenry County.
Northwestern Medicine’s grant will support the expansion of the clinic’s Chronic Disease Program. This project provides patients with primary care, education, nutrition, counseling, lab work, and blood pressure checks to monitor chronic diseases.
The education for patients of The Family Health Partnership Clinic will be provided in both English and Spanish and will be culturally sensitive.
“We are so grateful for Northwestern Medicine’s partnership with us. People without insurance are much less likely to seek care, and when they do, the problem has gotten worse and requires a higher level of care,” said Suzanne Hoban, MPH, executive director for Family Health Partnership Clinic. “Northwestern’s support helps us ensure high-quality health care which benefits our entire community.”
The grant to Turning Point, Inc. in Woodstock will support its Mental Health Therapy program. This service is offered to both adults and children who have been critically impacted by abuse. Violence in any form is traumatic, whether it is experienced first-hand or witnessed as a bystander.
“As the county’s comprehensive domestic violence organization, our partnership with Northwestern Medicine is critical in our mission of confronting domestic violence in McHenry County,” said Development Manager for Turning Point, Inc. Mike Neumann. “The funding they are providing will assist survivors of domestic violence with receiving mental health therapy needed due to trauma associated with their experience. We are grateful to have such a dedicated partner understand the needs of this vulnerable population.”
In addition to the grant funding, as part of Northwestern Medicine’s NM initiative, Northwestern Medicine employees build healthier communities through volunteer service and thoughtful actions.
Team NM volunteers help to weed and water the Kane County-based Essential Garden that is a part of the Aurora Food Pantry.
Other tasks volunteers get involved with include, helping to sort and label food at the Northern Illinois Food Bank located in Geneva, collecting coats for Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, putting together beds for Sleep in Heavenly Peace, and assembling heart-healthy care packages for patients at Tri-City Health Partnership.
Those interested in learning more about Northwestern Medicine can visit About Us | Northwestern Medicine.
