Grant Listings

A coalition of three Pittsburg area agencies will use a grant of $41,000 to identify children in a three-county region needing assistance enrolling for health insurance coverage and connecting to health care services.  The Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas will receive the grant and coordinate the project with the Family Resource Center and Mt. Carmel Congregational Health.  At least 1,000 children through the age of five and their families are expected to benefit from the program, which will help children obtain health insurance coverage and let families know where to find health care.  The program also will develop and provide free of charge file folders and directions for maintaining documentation needed to qualify for government programs and assistance.  Community Health Center CEO Krista Postai said the number of uninsured children in Kansas continues to increase and there is little happening to reverse the trend.  “We’re seeing a big increase in the number of children who are uninsured coming to our clinic.  Ironically, most of them are eligible for Medicaid, but for a variety of reasons are just not enrolled.  Without insurance, parents are hesitant to seek routine medical and dental care for their children because of worries about cost.  This program is going to help make sure children have access to health care and that families know where to find affordable health care.”  The Community Health Center provides medical, dental, and mental health care on a sliding fee scale based on income.  It serves approximately 10,000 patients each year.

A grant of $10,000 will fund a health care needs assessment in Montgomery County.  Under the leadership of the First Presbyterian Church of Independence, a coalition is forming to improve access to health care in the region.  The group plans to hire an experienced consultant to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment as its first step toward addressing what appears to be a growing problem in southeast Kansas.

Susan Kleinbeck, RN, PhD, the Health Ministries Coordinator for First Presbyterian Church, estimates more than 4200 people living in Montgomery County lack health insurance.  “Many are working and trying to raise families,” she said.  “An illness can become a crisis—even a short term hospitalization can mean months or years of debt.”

The needs assessment will help the group determine the extent of the need and the best method of delivering accessible medical, mental, and dental health care.

GraceMed Health Clinic, Wichita, has been awarded two grants to expand medical and dental services to underserved areas.  A grant of $100,000 will support the development of a new school-based health clinic in northeast Wichita.  A grant of $52,730 will fund the purchase of a van to transport staff and mobile equipment to locations such as long-term care facilities, churches, and schools throughout the region.  The mobile program will emphasize preventive medical and dental services.

A grant of $50,000 goes to the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians, Wichita.  In response to expected shortages of family physicians, the organization will facilitate a statewide planning process with the University of Kansas School of Medicine to develop and implement changes in family medicine education designed to increase the numbers of students entering the field and establishing practices in Kansas, particularly in rural Kansas.  

Support for the newly-created Kansas Faith Alliance for Health Reform comes in the form of $17,500 general operating grant from the Health Ministry Fund.  The Kansas Faith Alliance for Health Reform will support faith-based advocacy for health care reform in Kansas and provide people of the faith community with information about health care reform issues.  The Alliance’s advocacy agenda for 2008 includes support for expanded health coverage for children and low income adults and suppression of tobacco through increased taxation and restriction on usage in public places.

A $50,000 grant helps support a two-year planning process to develop strategies to increase the number of skilled nurses in rural Kansas communities.  The Kansas Hospital Education and Research Foundation, Topeka, receives the grant to facilitate the Kansas Nurse Attrition and Clinical Collaborative (KNAC Collaborative).  Eleven other organizations have committed to participate in the project and more are expected to join as workgroups are formed around promising strategies for Kansas.  The project director, Cara Greve, said there is already a shortage of Registered Nurses in Kansas and rural areas find it particularly difficult to recruit adequate numbers of health care providers.  “An efficient nurse pipeline is essential to assuring adequate numbers for Kansas’ future.  We’ll be looking at ways we can graduate more of the 500 or so students who start but don’t complete nursing education programs in Kansas each year.”  Greve said the KNAC Collaborative will address attrition at all stages of the nursing continuum from education through early employment and also work to expand and enhance clinical practicum sites. 

The Kiowa County Health Department will sponsor a community health screening for Greensburg area residents.  Lab tests and depression screening will be available to help determine those in the county who may have health issues stemming from the May 4^th tornado.   The Health Ministry Fund is providing underwriting for the lab tests so that this service can be provided without charge.

Work begun with the recent Sedgwick County Summit on Health Care Access will continue through community teams to be facilitated by the Sedgwick County Health Department.    A grant of $19,000 supports community teams to complete capacity and gap assessments about the health care system in Sedgwick and to implement strategies to improve access to health care for uninsured and under-insured persons living in Sedgwick County.  It is anticipated that changes can occur to improve transportation options for people needing health care, to decrease inappropriate use of emergency rooms, to increase usage of after-hours clinics, to improve patient-provider information through a shared health information data process and to increase awareness of medical services available in the community.

A planning grant of $12,700 is awarded to the Spirituality Resource Center, Salina.  The organization is involved in developing a new concept to promote health and improve access to health care through the use of  “complementary currency.”  Complementary currency, according to organizers, provides a way of earning and trading goods and services outside of using money.  Bernard Lietaer, the technical developer of the Euro currency and internationally recognized for his work on money and complementary currency, is consulting on the project.

A grant of $49,980 to Communities in Schools of Wichita/Sedgwick County (CIS) supports taking a coordinated, comprehensive health promotion program to area middle schools.   The project will be piloted in Valley Center and Derby schools during the three years of the grant.  The program, developed originally in Wichita elementary schools, is called Making Great Strides and encourages healthy eating and physical activity.  Health education, special family events, and media literacy will be emphasized.  In addition to helping students practice healthier lifestyles, the project aims at creating a culture of health in schools.  Mary Galvin, CIS Executive Director, said the project is an extension of the role of the organization over the past sixteen years in connecting the resources of the community to the needs of children. “We believe a basic need in our schools is giving children a healthy start for a healthy future.  Right now our children are mirroring the same behaviors we see in the larger society—poor food choices and too little physical activity.  Unfortunately, the consequences of an unhealthy lifestyle are also being mirrored in our young children – increasing rates of obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes.  Making Great Strides is about supporting children to make healthier choices and creating an environment in which those choices are easier to make.”

The Kansas Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (KACCRRA) receives a grant to continue development of Healthy Kansas Kids.  The program was started in 2006 and provides training statewide for child care professionals in techniques for increasing young children’s physical activity and healthy food choices.  A study of physical activity among young children in child care conducted as part of the program showed surprisingly little time spent in moderate and vigorous physical activity in relationship to sedentary time.  Healthy Kansas Kids is designed to stimulate changes in child care practice aimed at preventing obesity.  KACCRRA’s Infant/Toddler Project Director Lana Messner said effective prevention has to start younger than school age.  “These children are developing lifetime habits and child care can play an important role in helping them develop healthy habits.”

A grant of $50,000 is awarded to the Child Nutrition and Wellness section of the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) to help expand a program designed to improve the health and school performance of students in Kansas elementary schools.  Eat, Exercise, Excel, developed four years ago at Anthony Elementary School in Leavenworth, adds physical activity time to the school day and improves meal time procedures to enhance nutrition.  Jodi Mackey, KSDE’s director of Child Nutrition & Wellness, said the program transformed not only student health at Anthony Elementary, but also student achievement and behavior.  She expects similar results in schools that fully implement all components of the program.  The grant will support technical assistance for implementation in six Kansas schools over the next three years.

With a grant of $43,035, Kansas Nutrition Network, a Wichita-based organization that is part of Kansas State University, plans to launch a statewide information campaign to encourage low-fat dairy products for children.  Kansas Nutrition Network coordinator Karen Fitzgerald said the campaign emphasizes the importance of switching to lowfat or fat-free milk and lowfat dairy products such as cheese and yogurt once a child reaches the age of two.  “This is an easy way to enjoy the nutritional advantages of dairy products while lowering the amount of fat in the diet, but we don’t believe that message is getting to caregivers for young children.”  The Moove to Lowfat Dairy campaign will provide promotional materials and supplies to agencies in Kansas providing services to families with young children.  Fitzgerald said the agencies partnering with Kansas Nutrition Network do a good job of helping families understand how to make healthier food choices for young children.

K-State Research and Extension receives a grant to promote physical activity and healthy food choices to Spanish-speaking residents of Southwestern Kansas.  The grant will support production of six short “soap opera” style television spots that will be aired on Spanish language television and radio in Garden City.  The “telenovelas” will be produced locally using local actors.  Karen Hudson, Coordinator for the Family Nutrition Program, hopes this new approach will help the messages gain acceptance.  “Hispanics in this region are developing chronic diseases such as diabetes at a higher rate than the rest of the population.  Part of the problem may be dietary and lifestyle changes as immigrants adjust to life in America.  We are noticing a lot more processed foods and fewer fresh fruits and vegetables.”  She added that the project developed in response to interest from Spanish speaking families in learning how to provide healthful, inexpensive meals and integrate physical activity into everyday life.

Providing the Best Start for Baby is the goal of a professionally-guided peer lactation counselor program being started by United Methodist Western Kansas Mexican-American Ministries (MAM), Garden City, with a grant from the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.  A $50,000 grant will support salaries, training, evaluation, and other expenses of a program aimed at helping new mothers choose to breastfeed their infants for at least six months.  Breastfeeding has been shown to improve health outcomes for mothers and their children, according to Jane Schlicklau, professor of nursing at Southwestern College, Winfield, who will be a consultant with the project.  The program is expected to serve 250 to 300 women.  Those who enroll will receive prenatal counseling, a hospital visit after giving birth, home visitation and telephone support.

A grant of $49,933 is awarded to the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Wichita, to develop and test a program to help Midwestern African Americans eat more healthfully.  Partnering with Wichita African American faith communities of multiple denominations, KU School of Medicine’s Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health will tailor recipes and food preparation to appeal to the taste preferences of Midwestern African Americans.  Other skills to encourage consumption of more fruits and vegetables and less fat will be part of the program.  In addition, policies in churches related to foods and how the church and community environment impacts healthy food choices will be explored through community discussions.  Following development in Wichita, the program will be made available to other Kansas communities.

A $50,000 grant goes to Healthy Options for Kansas Communities, an organization providing services in the Planeview neighborhood of Wichita.  The grant will help a new dental clinic expand with the services of a full time dentist.  The clinic provides dental services on a sliding fee scale based on income.

The United Methodist Health Ministry Fund has pledged a second grant of $500,000 to the continued development of regional dental clinics to serve low-income Kansans if an additional $1 million can be raised.  The Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved, Topeka, is coordinating an effort started this year to develop “dental hubs” in community health centers statewide.  Each “hub” will offer dental services on a sliding fee scale based on income and provide outreach prevention services to a broader geographic region using dental hygienists.  The Health Fund joined other private funders and the Kansas Legislature in supporting the “dental hub” development project.  Health Fund President Kim Moore explained that the Health Fund’s commitment of a million dollars to regional access to dental care is a strong statement from the foundation, which awards total grants of just over $3 million a year.  “It will take several years to achieve the kind of geographic reach envisioned with the dental hub plan, and we hope our early commitment to continuing this development will encourage others to join in and provide needed support.”

A grant of $18,000 goes to the Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved (KAMU), Topeka, to underwrite dental professionals representing Kansas primary care safety net clinics attendance at national and regional conferences providing clinical and administrative training.  Denice Curtis, director of the clinical area for KAMU, said these opportunities for continuing education are vitally important to maintaining quality of services and retaining dental professionals in Kansas clinics.

The Kansas Department of Corrections has been awarded a grant of $66,500 to establish a dental lab program at the Topeka Correctional Facility.  The lab will provide training and work experience for inmate workers in making dentures as well as providing dentures to order for inmates in KDOC facilities.  The lab will produce more than 300 dentures for inmates each year. KDOC Deputy Secretary for Programs, Research & Support Services Roger Haden said the need for dental appliances continues to increase among the inmate population.  One reason, Haden cited, is the increase in the cases of extreme tooth decay resulting from methamphetamine drug use.  “This lab is a win-win.  It promotes improved oral health through providing dentures fabricated in-house and gives inmates trained in making the dentures marketable skills for the workforce upon release.”

A $50,000 grant will go to the Kansas Office of Oral Health to pilot a program designed to improve the integration of oral health services and medical services in safety net clinics.  GraceMed Health Center, Wichita, and Health Ministries Clinic, Newton, have been selected to pilot the program.  The Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved will provide technical assistance.  Aimed primarily at young children, the program will provide oral health education, case management, and streamlined medical and dental referral for treatment needs.  Dr. Katherine Weno, Director of the Office of Oral Health, said children regularly receive physical check-ups, but aren’t so likely to receive necessary oral health screenings and preventive treatment.  “We hope this program will help the medical staff and dental staff work together to address the health needs of the whole child with each visit rather than treating dental and medical services as totally separate.”

The Kansas Head Start Association receives a grant of $155,760 to create a more coordinated system of oral health care for young children.  The goals of the program are to assure that children enrolled in Head Start receive dental assessments, preventive services, and treatment in a timely manner.

The Rooks County Health Department receives a grant of $7,420 to improve the oral health of young children and families.  The grant will provide materials and training for Tiny Teeth Healthy Habits, a program developed in Cowley County and offered through Legacy, A Community Foundation.  The program aims to help health care and social service agencies integrate oral health education into existing services.  Good oral hygiene and proper oral care for young children will be emphasized.  Lorraine Baughman, administrator of the Rooks County Health Department, said her agency sees entirely too many young children with dental problems.  “A healthy mouth is very important to health overall,” she explained.  “It is too late to wait until these kids get into school, we need to help families understand the importance of everyday habits to take care of teeth so these problems can be avoided later.”

The Salina Family Healthcare Center has been awarded $115,000 to expand its dental clinic services.  The grant will support hiring a second dentist and a hygienist after a new dental director is hired.  The clinic expects to take hygiene services to counties surrounding Salina as part of its expansion.

The Foundation for the Aging and Care of Elders of Kansas (FACE of Kansas), Topeka, has been awarded a grant of $50,000.  The grant will be used to develop and implement oral health training for staff members of long-term care facilities throughout the state.  The training will be focused on the daily oral care maintenance needs of frail elderly residents.  The program is expected to be started in thirty facilities within the next two years.

Wichita State University (WSU) receives $26,800 to develop and evaluate an oral health curriculum for Physician Assistant students.  Faculty from both the Dental Hygiene and Physician Assistant departments will be involved in the new curriculum development.  The WSU College of Health Professions graduates 42 physician assistants each year.  These health professionals are often the first to see a patient, according to Physician Assistant department chairperson Richard Muma, and are in a position to provide oral health education and notice signs of oral disease.  Oral health education, however, is usually a minimal part of the medical provider’s education, said Denise Maseman, chairperson of the Dental Hygiene department and the director of the oral health curriculum project.  “We believe this project will help physician assistants be more knowledgeable and comfortable with oral health in their practices and that will benefit patients of all ages.”

A $75,000 grant has been awarded to the Center for Community Support and Research of Wichita State University to support the organization’s work with Kansas non-profits.  The Center for Community Support and Research, through its Compassion Kansas program, provides small grants and technical assistance to non-profit organizations.  The program’s goals include improving the services and organizational strength of small faith-based and community-based organizations serving Kansans in need.  The grant provides part of the required financial match for a federal grant that supports the program from the Administration of Children and Families through the Compassion Capital Fund.