COLUMBUS – Studies show that nearly half of our personal health status can be attributed to how we live our lives: by what we eat and how much physical activity we get, if any. Based on this premise, the Foundation for Healthy Communities, a charitable arm of the Ohio Hospital Association, is making grants to hospitals which promote healthy lifestyles in the communities they serve.

Throughout 2002, the Foundation is supporting projects sponsored by Ohio hospitals which are focused on reducing the incidence of substance abuse and low-birth-weight babies and increasing the number of Ohioans engaged in regular physical activity.

Five Ohio hospitals were awarded a combined total of $52,611 for community programs which ultimately prevent disease and illness and the health care costs associated with them.

·    Health Improvement Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati received $10,000 for a three-year neighborhood partnership work group to reduce low-birth-weight babies in at-risk neighborhoods among African-American women.

·    Adena Health System in Chillicothe was awarded $10,493 for Exercising for Life, a program promoting healthy lifestyles though exercise for low-income individuals suffering with obesity or cardiac disease.

·    The Children’s Medical Center in Dayton was awarded $8,460 for the Body Shop Program, a physician-prescribed nutrition, and exercise and support program for low-income children in 20 counties.

·    Henry County Hospital in Napoleon received $8,712 for Y.E.S., Youth Enjoying Sobriety, a prevention and intervention program for identified youths with documented substance abuse incidences and their families.

·    Children’s Hospital, Disability Services, in Cincinnati received $14,946 for a health and fitness program targeted to disabled students with significant disabilities who are usually prevented from engaging in regular physical activity.

“These hospitals are demonstrating their commitment to community-based solutions that begin with encouraging individuals to invest daily in their own health and the well-being of those they love. Hospitals are acting as leaders in the quest for healthy communities by supporting activities that go beyond the delivery of clinical care,” said Lynne Ayres, director of the Foundation

The Foundation for Healthy Communities was created and endowed by Ohio hospitals in 1994 to promote creative collaborations for better health. The 85 projects funded so far for more than $800,000 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 solicits project initiatives twice a year with grants awarded in the spring and fall. In addition to the 2002 focus area of promoting healthy lifestyles through reduction of substance abuse and low-birth-weight babies and increasing regular physical activity, applicants are encouraged to submit collaborative, creative approaches toward improving health status through measurable and replicable results.  Grant guidelines and application information for the next cycle as well as examples of funded projects are available on the Ohio Hospital Association’s Web site at www.ohanet.org.

The Foundation is an arm of the Ohio Hospital Association. OHA represents more than 170 hospitals and 40 health systems with more than 200,000 employees 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. 

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