|
North Country Initiative Awards Promising Practice
Funds to Seven North Country Organizations
Published: March 31, 2022 at
11:30 a.m.
By: Media Release from North Country Initiative
NCI AWARDS PROMISING PRACTICE FUNDS TO SEVEN NORTH
COUNTRY ORGANIZATIONS
Projects Address Unmet Healthcare Needs in Tri-County
Region
Watertown, NY- Seven
organizations in the region were recently awarded grant funding to
implement promising strategies to fill physical, social, and behavioral
healthcare needs in the community. This is the second year that North
Country Initiative (NCI) has strategically invested in these priority
areas; in 2021, five projects were awarded a total of $175,000.
Criteria for the
awards were driven by a Summer 2020 poll of regional healthcare providers
who were asked their feedback on the most pressing health issues in the
tri-county area. Of the 60 issues identified, 14 were earmarked for
Promising Practices funding within six categories, including: prevent and
manage chronic disease; promote mental and behavioral well-being; prevent
communicable diseases; promote healthy infants and children; promote
geriatric and end-of-life care; and strengthen healthcare infrastructure
and delivery.
In February 2022,
NCI issued a request for proposals (RFP) to its partner organizations.
Proposals were received and reviewed by a Community Review Committee
comprised of healthcare stakeholders including a Medicaid-insured
individual. Grant applications were evaluated based on project feasibility
and impact, primarily on the Medicaid/Medicare/uninsured population; focus on
social determinants of health; community need; project management; and
long-term sustainability.
“NCI is pleased
to direct funding for innovative healthcare projects to our clinical and
community-based partners once again in 2022,” said Joanna Loomis, NCI
Deputy Director. “Further, it was important to us to continue involving
multiple stakeholder perspectives in the review process, as each reviewer
thoughtfully evaluated the applications’ strengths through their respective
lenses and lent their particular expertise to the
process. One of the reviewers is a Medicaid-insured individual who helped
us further understand the impact that the projects would have on our
region’s Medicaid population. This changed the course of the conversation
and was an invaluable contribution to the process.”
Seven projects
were selected for funding. The awardees and their respective projects are
as follows:
- Bolton’s Pharmacy – “Vaccines & Vitamins
for Children” will
provide immunizations and free multivitamins to at least 200 children
in low-income households through Bolton’s Watertown location.
- Carthage Area Hospital – “Healthcare on the
Highway: Bringing Primary and Preventative Care into the Community” will staff a mobile primary care
clinic, which will travel throughout Jefferson, Lewis, and St.
Lawrence counties and will make preventive care (such as well visits,
vaccinations, screenings, and more) more accessible to local residents with transportation challenges.
- Complete Family Care & Laser Center –
“Bridging the Care Management Gap for Medicaid Patients” will make it possible for an
independently-owned primary care practice in Jefferson County to
provide clinical and social care management support for identified
high-risk Medicaid patients.
- Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center – “Cook to Eat
to Live: Basic Cooking Skills for Better Health” will create a teaching kitchen within
Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in which people with pre-diabetes,
diabetes, obesity, other chronic conditions, or families with children
who may be at risk to develop chronic conditions, can participate in
group or individual classes on healthy meal and snack preparation. The
project also includes the “$25 Feeds Five” program which provides
participants with make-at-home meal kits incorporating locally sourced
ingredients.
- Credo Community Center for the Treatment of
Addictions – “Mobile Medication-Assisted Treatment Unit” will support the purchase and staffing of a
mobile van which will travel across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence
counties to provide behavioral health and substance use assessments,
counseling, medication administration, peer support, and other
services.
- St. Lawrence County Community Services –
“Creating a Trauma-Informed Response Culture for St. Lawrence County
Correctional Facility” will
facilitate the delivery of a New York State Office of Mental Health
training on trauma-informed response among corrections officers,
medical and administrative staff, and leadership within the St.
Lawrence County Correctional Facility. Goals of the project include a
reduction in reported inmate misbehavior and grievances, and an
increase in inmate engagement with rehabilitative programming and
post-release services in the community. Note: this award is pending
St. Lawrence County Board of Legislators approval.
- Watertown Family YMCA – “Blood Pressure
Self-Monitoring Innovation: A Partnership to Empower Low-Income
High-Risk Individuals through Self-Monitoring for Successful
Hypertension Control” will
enroll two cohorts, each composed of 50 participants who have or are
at risk for high blood pressure, in a four-month program in which
participants regularly self-monitor their blood pressure at home using
grant-funded equipment, engage in personal consultations with trained
Healthy Heart Ambassadors, and participate in nutrition education for
better blood pressure management.
One of the
recipients, Credo Community Center for the Treatment of Addictions,
described the impact the grant will have on their operations throughout the
region: “With financial support from OASAS and NCI, Credo is proud to
announce the establishment of a mobile medication unit (MMU) that will not
only provide lifesaving medication assisted treatment to individuals in
communities with limited access, but will also equip us to provide mobile
screenings, assessments, counseling, injections, toxicology testing, harm
reduction training and education, as well as peer services,” said John
Wilson, Executive Director of Credo. “Through our work with schools,
the legal system, businesses, emergency medical services, community-based
organizations, prevention councils, etc. we will build connections, create
awareness, and strengthen referral networks to enhance the continuum of
care for those with opioid use disorders, substance use disorders, and/or
mental illness.”
Furthermore,
Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center Foundation Executive Director Amanda Hitterman shared: "Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center
is honored and humbled to receive such support from NCI. This
investment will allow us to take our preventative programs to the next
level and teach area families that affordable, delicious meals can be
incorporated into their lives."
The twelve-month
performance period for the grant-funded projects is April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2023. Each project’s impact will
be measured throughout the performance period and shared at its conclusion.
“These Promising
Practices funds will make it possible for our partners to implement
innovative healthcare projects throughout the tri-county region,” noted Ms.
Loomis. “Our community is fortunate to have an array of clinical and community-based
partners who are passionate about improving the health and well-being of local residents. We look forward to witnessing the
impact each of these projects will have in our region.”
# # #
About the North
Country Initiative
The North Country
Initiative (NCI) is a partnership of hospitals, independent physicians and
community providers working together to reform the healthcare system in
across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties. Together, these
partners carry out strategies to coordinate leadership, align incentives,
create clinical programs, and develop technical infrastructure. The outcome
of these changes will improve the health of the community, reduce the cost
of healthcare, and improve the care for patients. For more
information about NCI, visit www.northcountryinitiative.org.
About the Fort
Drum Regional Health Planning Organization
The Fort Drum
Regional Health Planning Organization (FDRHPO) works to strengthen
the system for health for the integrated Fort Drum and civilian
community through analysis, identification of needs and leveraging of
resources to fill gaps through innovation and collaboration. For more about
FDRHPO, visit www.fdrhpo.org.
|
