The Health Foundation for Western and Central New York has awarded new grants totaling more than $1.2 million in the second half of 2012, Foundation President Ann F. Monroe announced Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013.

The Health Foundation also published three new reports on health issues of importance to western and central New York.

The Foundation’s grant making activities reflect its commitment to three focus areas: improving the quality of care for frail elders and deferring the triggers of decline; improving health care for young children living in communities of poverty and growing community health capacity.

Frail Elders: Creating Options for Dignified Aging

The following agencies were awarded grant funding as part of Phase 2 of the Health Foundation’s Step Up to Stop Falls^® initiative:
 

• Allegany/Western Steuben Rural Health Network, Inc., Wellsville, NY - $70,000 to expand the Network’s Matter of Balance program, integrate assessment into its programs and implement a physician engagement program to incorporate falls prevention into primary care.

• Buffalo Rehab Group Physical Therapy, PC, Tonawanda, NY - $25,000 to expand falls risk assessments and interventions to all six Buffalo Rehab locations.

• Erie County Department of Senior Services, Buffalo, NY - $25,000 to create an interactive resource for NY Connects staff to share information about local falls prevention services and programs.

• Genesee County Office for the Aging, Batavia, NY – $70,000 to sustain falls prevention work, expand community education, begin tai chi classes and provide falls prevention training to emergency responders.

• Healthy Community Alliance, Inc., Gowanda, NY - $70,000 to continue the Alliance’s existing falls prevention work, as well as adding locations for tai chi, supporting professional education and engaging physician practices to screen for falls risks.

• Human Services Coalition of Tompkins County, Ithaca, NY - $70,000 to continue falls prevention work that focuses on senior housing and targets other high risk groups.

• McAuley Seton Home Care, Buffalo, NY - $22,684 to incorporate falls assessment into its electronic medical records and enhance the organization’s medication review to include a review of falls risks. 

• University at Buffalo Occupational Therapy Department, Buffalo, NY – $35,000 for the development of step-by-step training for older adults and families to use the Home Safety Self-Assessment Tool to improve home safety. 

• Visiting Nurse Association of Western New York, Williamsville, NY - $32,535 to put in place a comprehensive falls prevention program.

 Other grants awarded include:

• Daemen College Nursing Department, Amherst, NY - $30,000 for the development of a Geriatric Care Rotation to improve the elder-care competence of its nurse practitioner students.  

• Eighth District Dental Society, Buffalo, NY - $15,000 to provide financial assistance to elderly patients receiving oral health treatment at the University at Buffalo Dental Clinic and to have dentists visit local senior centers to conduct dental screenings.

• LeMoyne College, Syracuse, NY - $30,000 for the integration of aging, advance care planning and end-of-life care into the nursing curriculum at Le Moyne.

• Parkside Community Association, Buffalo, NY - $5,000 to pilot a Volunteer Driver Program that will pair volunteer drivers with local seniors in a continued effort to help seniors remain in their communities as they grow older.

Young Children Living in Poverty: Building Blocks for Healthier Kids

The following grants were awarded as part of the Health Foundation’s Maternal and Child Health Initiative in central New York:

• Center for Court Innovation, Syracuse, NY - $50,000 to provide direct medical navigation services for low-income women who are pregnant or parenting a child under the age of one. 
• Family Nurturing Center of Central New York, Utica, NY - $50,000 for a consultant to develop, test, implement and evaluate new strategies that will increase the enrollment rate for Healthy Families Home Visiting Services in Oneida County. 

• Herkimer County Public Health Nursing Services, Herkimer, NY - $50,000 will allow the Pregnancy Outreach and Parent Support program to add facilitated medical and support services, transportation, and expand the reach of the Healthy Families program in the community.

• Rome Memorial Hospital, Rome, NY - $50,000 for the hospital’s Prenatal Care Clinic to implement the Centering Healthcare Institute’s Centering Pregnancy® program.

 Other grants awarded include:

• Heart of the City Neighborhoods, Inc., Buffalo, NY - $30,000 to manage a New York State Housing and Community Renewal and New York State Affordable Housing Corporation grant that provides minor home repairs for residences where frail elders and/or children in poverty live.

• New York Academy of Medicine, New York, NY - $38,925 to conduct qualitative research to help understand the factors influencing maternal and child health in western New York. 

Growing Community Health Capacity

The following grants were awarded as part of the Health Foundation’s new Ready or Not initiative:

• Allegany/Western Steuben Rural Health Network, Inc., Wellsville, NY – $50,000 to build an infrastructure that will allow for comprehensive data gathering, storage and analysis in order to improve the Network’s capacity to evaluate its programs.

• Amherst Meals on Wheels, Amherst, NY - $16,885 to work with a consultant to pinpoint gaps in services, identify potential partners, examine and streamline their processes in order to be more efficient and improve the quality of service to the recipients.

• Catholic Charities of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY – $48,466 for the Department of Clinical and Aging Services to finish its business plan, develop an advisory board, focus on staff development, identify external partners and implement a quality improvement plan.

• Complete Senior Care, Inc., Niagara Falls, NY – $50,000 to engage a PACE expert consultant to assist the organization in streamlining its operations to respond to anticipated increase in need for their services resulting from Medicaid redesign and changing regulations.

• Erie County Department of Senior Services, Buffalo, NY – $50,000 to engage experts that will assisting the Department in identifying its role in the future of service delivery in the changing environment.

• Jericho Road Ministries, Buffalo, NY – $50,000 for consulting services to assist Jericho Road Family Practice and Jericho Road Ministries, which are merging into Jericho Road Community Health Center, in determining their future medical reimbursement rates and building the capacity of their combined finance and billing departments.

• Madison County Health Department, Wampsville, NY - $47,511 to launch a healthcare economic development initiative, develop a strategic health improvement plan for the county and develop a rural health network.  

• Parkway Senior Center, Utica, NY – $50,000 to strengthen the organization’s sustainability by further developing and implementing the three main components of the Center’s strategic plan: fund development, marketing and outreach.

• The Centers at St. Camillus, Syracuse, NY – $49,680 to retain a consultant to assist in the organization in respond and adapt to changes in clinical care patterns, reimbursement policies and regulations, technology usage and consumer demands.

Other grants awarded include:

• Clean Air Coalition of Western New York, Buffalo, NY - $2,000 to lead training for the international community through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

• Friends of Bassett Healthcare Network, Cooperstown, NY - $75,000 to support Bassett Medical Center’s new integrated mental health and primary care program in Herkimer County, which will offer on-site identification and treatment of behavioral health concerns in primary care clinics.

• National Urban Fellows, New York, NY - $10,000 to support a 2013 class of National Urban Fellows in the City of Niagara Falls to focus on community health capacity.

• WRVO, Oswego, NY - $27,528 for WRVO to produce six 90-minute community forums as part of a series “Issues in Community Health.”

In addition to these new grants, the Health Foundation also commissioned new publications such as “The Greater Buffalo Trauma-Informed System of Care Community Plan.”

 “Maternal and Perinatal Health in Western New York” and the “No Wrong Door” study.