During 2006, the Foundation awarded continuing support of more than $1.4 million to four ongoing Health Care and Health Promotion Synergy Initiative projects. In addition, Activation Fund grants made this year totaled $468,686 and Board Designated grants totaled $120,000.
In March 2006, the Board set aside $7.7 million and issued a call for a second round of the Synergy Initiative. Letter of intent were due by August 1, 2006, and in September, the Board invited five to submit planning grant applications. All five of the planning grant applications were committed in December, for a total of $544,450 from FY’07 funds (see 2007 Grants).
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| Title: | Adolescent Self-Injury DVD and Training Manual | Amount: | $55,000 |
| Recipient: | The Bridge of Central Massachusetts |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
In an attempt to reduce the rates of adolescent self-injury in schools and improve the assessment, management and treatment of self-injury The Bridge of Central Massachusetts plans to create, test and evaluate a training manual and DVD. The training program will consist of three modules designed for teaching and administrative staff in secondary schools, school counseling staff and therapists, and students. The Foundation grant will be used to develop support materials, filming, editing and testing the curriculum. Other funding partners include The Fred Harris Daniels Foundation and the MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation.
Project Director: Barent Walsh, Ph.D., The Bridge of Central Massachusetts |
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| Title: | Central Massachusetts Oral Health Initiative - Project Implementation Grant, Year 5 | Amount: | $367,839 |
| Recipient: | UMass Medical School |
| Grant Type: | Synergy Initiative - Central Massachusetts Oral Health Initiative (CMOHI) |
Central Massachusetts Oral Health Initiative (CMOHI) is entering its fifth year of implementation with the focus on institutionalizing the programs it has been supporting which have increased access to dental care for vulnerable populations and furthering its advocacy agenda.
CMOHI’s primary areas of focus going forward will include:
- increased participation in school-based programs
- securing support for a full-time Dental Residency Director position
- working on key public policy issues (e.g., increasing MassHealth adult dental rates, recruiting additional dentists to participate in MassHealth)
- continued advocacy in conjunction with OHINCM and Health Care For All’s Oral Health Advocacy Task Force.
| Project Director: |
Dr. John Gusha |
| Project Administrator: |
Mr. Mick Huppert |
| Project Manager: |
Ms. Ellen Sachs Leicher |
| Fiscal Agent: |
UMass Medical School |
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| Title: | Child Abuse Prevention and Protection Collaborative - Project Implementation Grant, Year 4 | Amount: | $360,641 |
| Recipient: | Community HealthLink |
| Grant Type: | Synergy Initiative - Child Abuse Prevention and Protection Collaborative (CAPPC) |
Child Abuse Prevention and Protection Collaborative (CAPPC) has moved forward on a number of its key goals. This has involved building and sustaining a comprehensive community-based coalition around the issues of child abuse and neglect in Central Massachusetts. Thus far, 35 organizations, including state agencies and non-profits, have joined together to address these issues.
The second goal has been the development of programs to prevent the occurrence of abuse and neglect among families and health care professionals. Activities have included the Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) Prevention Campaign and the Family Outreach Network (FON). Four hospitals in Central Massachusetts are providing training for parents and other care-givers on the dangers and consequences of shaken baby syndrome. The Family Outreach Network is operating to work with families that have been identified as in need of support because of child abuse or neglect problems.
Going forward, CAPPC will be focusing its efforts on working with the Children’s Justice Center (CJC) at UMass to explore ways to interface prevention and ongoing treatment components with the existing indentification component provided by the CJC. The second area of emphasis will be advocacy, finally securing passage of legislation to mandate the SBS education program, and securing state funding to sustain the FON and for child advocacy activities at regional sites across the state.
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| Title: | Dialectical Behavior Therapy Program | Amount: | $44,768 |
| Recipient: | Children's Friend, Inc. |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
Children's Friend aims to establish a full outpatient Dialectical Behavior Therapy Program, including teen groups, parent groups, individual therapy, telephone consultation and clinical team meetings, in response to growing numbers of adolescents at risk for self-injury or suicide. Foundation fund grants will be used for start-up expenses to send clinical staff for formal training in DBT, ongoing consultation with the residential DBT program at The Bridge and for the purchase of resource materials and evaluation tools. Funds for this program have also been secured from the Stoddard Charitable Trust.
Project Director: Johanna Sagarin, Ph.D., Children's Friend, Inc.
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| Title: | Ed's Place Vocational Training Program | Amount: | $20,600 |
| Recipient: | South Middlesex Opportunity Council |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
The South Middlesex Opportunity Council, in partnership with Caledonia Farm, the UMass Extension Service and Heifer International, aims to establish a self-sustaining year-round vocational training program in woodworking and improve the efficiency of agricultural operations at Ed's Place, a farm-based, supportive housing program for chronically homeless men in recovery from substance abuse. The Foundation grant will be used to purchase and install a wood furnace and equipment for the new woodworking shop and adjacent greenhouse, and a hay baler to reduce the expenses associated with grain production.
Project Director: David McCloskey, South Middlesex Opportunity Council
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| Title: | Elm Park Community Health Center | Amount: | $50,000 |
| Recipient: | Family Health Center of Worcester |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
Family Health Center, in partnership with the Worcester Public Schools, the Worcester School Committee, the Pleasant Street Network Center, the Bowditch family and Becker College, plans to establish the Elm Park Community Health Center. This will be a school-based health center designed to engage underserved, low-income children and their families in primary and preventive health care. It will also serve neighborhood residents outside of normal school hours. The Foundation grant will be used for facility renovations. Funding partners will include the Hoche-Scofield Foundation and the Fallon Community Health Plan.
Project Director: Suzanne Patton, Family Health Center of Worcester, Inc. |
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| Title: | MassMedLink to Health | Amount: | $84,500 |
| Recipient: | Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
The MassMedLine program at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences will expand their capability to provide telephonic and electronic access to the public for information about medication safety and disease state management using a web portal and enhanced voice mail system. Initially, information will be available on medication safety and disease management on chronic conditions including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The information will be available in English and Spanish.
Project Director: Mary B. Sullivan, Pharm.D., MassMedLine
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| Title: | Men's Health Services Clinic | Amount: | $25,000 |
| Recipient: | Health Awareness Services of Central Massachusetts |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
Health Awareness Services plans to establish a Men's Health Services Clinic to provide sexual health clinical services for men at risk for sexually transmitted diseases, in particular for men who have sex with men. The Foundation grant will support hiring a male nurse practitioner, provide clinical supplies, educational materials and training.
Project Director: Michael Mazloff, Health Awareness Services
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| Title: | North Quabbin Comprehensive Access Network | Amount: | $89,095 |
| Recipient: | North Quabbin Community Coalition |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
The goal of this project is to improve access to mental health services, particulary for children in the North Quabbin region. Activities will center on educating local medical providers about the availability of mental health resources in the region and on recruiting additional mental health providers to enhance local capacity to offer these services.
Project Director: Rebecca Bialecki, North Quabbin Community Coalition
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| Title: | Oral Health Initiative of North Central Massachusetts - Project Implementation Grant, Year 4 | Amount: | $327,970 |
| Recipient: | Montachusett Opportunity Council |
| Grant Type: | Synergy Initiative - Oral Health Initiative of North Central Massachusetts (OHINCM) |
The Joint Coalition on Health received Planning (2001), Pilot (2002) and Implementation Grants (2003-2006) to expand access to treatment and preventive dental care in North Central MA. The Year 4 Implementation Grant reflects a continuation of successful strategies including: CHC Dental Service in Fitchburg and Gardner; dental GHAP program in Fitchburg and Leominster; hygienist training program at Mt. Wachusett Community College; school-based sealant and fluoride varnish programs in five North Central school districts; training for school nurses, pediatricians, maternity nurses and child birth educators to conduct parent education programs; implementing a pre-school oral health education program; a public awareness campaign (“Watch Your Mouth”); and public policy advocacy in conjunction with Central Massachusetts Oral Health Initiative (CMOHI) and the statewide Oral Health Advocacy Task Force coordinated by Health Care For All.
New strategies proposed this year include adding three dental chairs at the Gardner satellite of the Community Health Connections Family Health Center; partnering with the Forsyth Institute to expand school-based services to include temporary fillings and increase the age range of children served; preparation for the 2007 dental residency rotation with UMass; and use of the GHAP model to recruit providers to serve MassHealth patients and enroll new patients as health care reform is implemented.
| Project Co-Administrators: |
Ms. Kathleen McDermott, Montachusett Opportunity Council
Ms. Lori Martiska, Heywood Hospital |
| Fiscal Agent: |
Montachusett Opportunity Council |
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| Title: | Together For Kids - Project Implementation Grant, Year 4 | Amount: | $344,218 |
| Recipient: | Community HealthLink |
| Grant Type: | Synergy Initiative - Together For Kids (TFK) |
During its fourth year of implementation, the Together For Kids Coalition (TFK) is continuing to improve the capacity of childcare staff, childcare agencies and families to effectively meet the emotional and mental health needs of preschool children, focusing on those exhibiting challenging behaviors in childcare. In addition, this year will begin research on the transition of some of these children to kindergarten. Fifteen children/families have been enrolled in a study to assess the impact of early childhood interventions on the children as they move into kindergarten. A three-year, $400,000 grant from the National Institutes of Mental Health will support research into the curriculum and teacher and parent education. Advocacy efforts will include working with the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care and other organizations to ensure that TFK has input to the decisions being made to standardize the evaluation and outcomes measures that will be used statewide to monitor mental health consultations. TFK will also engage in a strategic planning process to begin to consider an appropriate structure for TFK going forward as the Foundation’s funding decreases and other funding sources are identified.
Project Director:
Project Manager: |
Ms. Carolyn Droser
Ms. Lynn Hennigan |
| Fiscal Agent: |
Community HealthLink |
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| Title: | Walk Smart! Active Schools Program | Amount: | $24,723 |
| Recipient: | East Quabbin Alliance for a Healthy Community |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
The East Quabbin Alliance (EQUAL), in partnership with the Quabbin Regional School District and the Central Mass. AHEC, will integrate the Walk Smart! Active Schools program into the current curriculum at the Ruggles Lane elementary school beginning with the third grade. The walking trials guidebook produced by EQUAL would allow students to use the trails as another opportunity to do more walking. Parents would be encouraged to participate and would be given a Family Fun Pack with materials that would help the family become more physically active.
Project Director: Joseph Stenger, M.D., EQUAL Steering Committee
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| Title: | Welcome Hope: Healing Center for Survivors of Torture | Amount: | $79,099 |
| Recipient: | Lutheran Refugee and Immigrant Services |
| Grant Type: | Activation Fund |
Lutheran Refugee and Immigrant Services is going to conduct a research project that will involve a comprehensive psychosocial assessment of 150 Worcester refugee families (recently settled from Western Africa and Somalia) who have survived torture. The objective of this research is to foster their psychosocial health. This project will include research support from Clark University and will use two valid research survey instruments. The ultimate goal of this project is to train social service workers in the unique rehabilitation needs of those who have survived torture and to see that state funds available for serving refugees and immigrants are apportioned to Worcester County proportionately.
Project Director: Jozefina Lantz, Lutheran Social Services of New England
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