HealthPath funding helps organizations provide essential services throughout COVID-19's impact
The HealthPath Foundation recognizes the impact COVID-19 has had on families, individuals, and community organizations across our 36-county service area. That is why earlier this year, we awarded grants for up to $10,000 to organizations addressing community needs in the areas of housing and shelter, food access, caregiving services, and overall healthcare in response to the pandemic.
In this grantee spotlight, we feature four organizations that received funding to address the caregiving and healthcare needs of children, older adults, and people with disabilities over the past few months.
Breastfeeding Outreach for Our Beautiful Sisters: Breastfeeding Outreach for Our Beautiful Sisters was able to supply and deliver diapers, wipes, and masks to new mothers and newborns up to two-weeks old with funding from HealthPath. Many of the mothers the organization serves are either unemployed or have lost their jobs due to the pandemic. The organization also offered quarantined mothers virtual support sessions and access to a mental health counselor.
Due to the labor and delivery guidelines put in place during the pandemic, one first time mother was unable to have the father of her child present for the birth of their son. When she was released from the hospital to quarantine at home, she was left with very little resources because she lost her job earlier in the year. Funding from HealthPath allowed Breastfeeding Outreach for Our Beautiful Sisters to give this new mother, and so many other mothers, access to necessary items for her newborn son. By delivering needed items to new mothers, the organization also helped to reduce the risk of the mothers’ exposure to COVID-19.
Child Care Choices, Inc. (CCC): When childcare programs shut down in Ohio earlier this year, CCC was unsure what the organization’s role would be in the community. All of their everyday programs and services came to a screeching halt. But in mid-March, 20 of their providers were able to open under the temporary pandemic childcare license to provide services to kids whose parents were essential workers.
Childcare providers faced daily challenges with changing guidelines for keeping children and staff safe and healthy. Because of the lower child to teacher ratios, many of the childcare programs struggled to make ends meet as revenue was significantly decreased. Ratios were reduced by at least 50% for the centers, and many were in dire need of cleaning supplies that were scarce or nonexistent from most vendors.
With the grant from HealthPath, CCC was able to provide most of the cleaning supplies needed by all 20 childcare locations., which helped alleviate some providers’ financial stress. As CCC delivered the baskets of needed cleaning supplies, they were met with smiles and thanks along with stories of hardship and resilience.
Compassionate Care of Shelby County, Inc. (CCSC): At the start of the pandemic, Compassionate Care was one of the only three healthcare centers open in Shelby County, a county of nearly 42,000 people. HealthPath funded CCSC nurse practitioners’ hours and allowed the healthcare center to continue operating to serve the community and to care for their patients.
With very little PPE at the time and a traumatized community, CCSC became a place for residents to seek personalized care and support. For one worried county resident who believed he had COVID-19, CCSC was able to find him a testing site and support him during his 14-day quarantine period. This gentleman, like many others, was scared and overwhelmed because he did not have a family to help him during this time. In addition to supporting his health needs, CCSC went above and beyond to provide this patient with food and necessary resources during his quarantine.
YMCA of Western Stark County: The YMCA of Western Stark County was able to support their pandemic childcare services by paying staff salaries with the grant from HealthPath. With the restrictions associated with running a pandemic site, the organization’s cost was more than three times what they normally would be to operate their state-licensed childcare.
All are welcome at the YMCA, and no one is turned away if they are unable to pay. Scholarships were provided to essential care workers, so their children had a safe place to stay while they went to work each day. One such family has a three-year-old son with autism and received financial assistance of 50%. Both parents are essential care workers and depend on the YMCA’s program to support their son, which means bringing in additional staff to meet his challenges.
Funding from HealthPath allowed the YMCA to help 53 parents – all essential care workers – during this time of critical need.
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