For Immediate Release                                                                        Contact: Lynne Ayres
October 22, 2001                                                                                        614-221-7614
                                                                                                               lynnea@ohanet.org     

Ohio Hospital Foundation Awards Grants for  
Elderly and End-of-Life Care

COLUMBUS – Reaching out to and staying connected with at-risk older adults is the focus of grants awarded by the Foundation for Healthy Communities of the Ohio Hospital Association.

Seven new community-based health programs are receiving a combined total of $50,382 in funding, bringing the number of grants awarded to hospitals by the Foundation since 1994 to 80 with more than $750,000 in funding.  

Throughout 2001, the Foundation sought proposals from Ohio hospitals aimed at improving care to the elderly and those facing end-of-life issues. The foundation is funding several projects in which hospitals are collaborating with local caregiver organizations to address psychological needs of this vulnerable population.

“Older adults seek the same sense of independence and quality of life as you and me. The projects the Foundation is funding will provide safety nets and resources to assist and keep this often-isolated and at-risk population connected and active in their communities,” said Foundation Director Lynne Ayres.

In grants announced today:

• Center for Healthy Communities of Dayton received $7,500 for the Hospital-based Kinship Program, which will educate eight hospitals’ staffs about the needs of kinship caregivers who are typically grandparents.
• Grady Memorial Hospital in Delaware was awarded $7,197 for the Grady D.R.I.V.E. program, which offers a driving evaluation to seniors with physical or cognitive impairments who are prohibited from driving prior to having an evaluation.
• Lake Hospital System in Willoughby received $7,500 to conduct screening in the community to heighten awareness of depression and identify those at risk for depression. 
• The Repertory Project in Cleveland received $7,500 to partner with University Hospitals of Cleveland to provide music and movement therapy to hospitalized elderly to address their psychological and physiological needs after surgery.
• Robinson Memorial Hospital in Ravenna was awarded $5,175 for the Caregiver Training Program, which will educate community members on providing care for ill or disabled elderly loved ones.
• St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center – Mercy Home Care in Toledo received $6,100 for the Senior Outreach Program, designed to provide home-based intervention to at-risk, low-income, isolated seniors to improve their quality of life and decrease unnecessary hospitalizations and/or emergency room visits.
• Southwest General Health Center in Middleburg Heights received $9,410 for the Gatekeeper Program, which identifies at-risk seniors and their needs, connects them to the appropriate resources and follows up on their care.

The Foundation for Healthy Communities was created and endowed by Ohio hospitals in 1994 to promote creative collaborations for better health. The 80 projects funded so far have provided community health needs assessments, smoking cessation and prevention, mobile and community health clinics and child immunizations and other health improvement programs.

The Foundation encourages hospitals and health systems to move beyond traditional roles of healing illness and injury and develop promising methods for promoting health in ways that will help all members of their community realize their potential.

The Foundation solicits grant applications twice a year for projects generally awarded in the spring and fall.

The Foundation seeks projects which meet the following criteria:

• expand traditional definitions of individual and community health beyond the delivery of health care services to reflect broader societal issues,
• encourage collaboration between health care providers and other community organizations to improve health status;
• demonstrate measurable improvement in health status;
• have the potential for replication in other communities; and
• have a long-term impact on communities.

The Foundation is an arm of the Ohio Hospital Association. OHA represents more than 170 hospitals and 40 health systems throughout Ohio. OHA’s mission is to provide leadership. OHA works with members in meeting the health care needs and improving the health status of the communities they serve. Visit OHA and learn more about the Foundation for Healthy Communities at www.ohanet.org.

###