Kaiser Permanente in the Community
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. To do that, we know we must focus on the impact we can have on our community at home and its tireless workers who care for our well-being, day in and day out. We recognize that the health of our community is so much more than physically healing a broken bone or prescribing medications. That’s why we are making financial contributions starting with housing and education.
Important Update - 2023 Community Health Snapshot
With a total community health investment of 53 million dollars last year, the below accomplishments reflect Kaiser Permanente’s continued prioritizing of quality, access, and service – for all. The snapshot reflects Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to each of our neighbors, regardless of geography, beautifully bringing to life Kaiser Permanente’s continued commitment to the people of Atlanta and the entire state of Georgia.
Click here for the 2023 community health snapshot.
WORKFORCE IS HEALTH
- Kaiser Permanente is supporting the work of community organizations to provide mental health care to more Georgians across the state. Currently 1 in 3 people in America live in mental health professional shortage areas. Completing the required supervised work hours is one of the key barriers unlicensed mental health professionals face in securing licensure.
- That’s why Kaiser Permanente is investing over $490,000 in support focused on increasing the number of diverse licensed clinicians to address Georgia’s mental health workforce shortage. The grant funding will be used to support the work of Resilient Georgia, a statewide coalition of 900 public-private partners and stakeholders tasked with creating an integrated mental health network, with a particular focus on better serving youth and families.
Mental Health Workforce Accelerator Program
In 2023 Kaiser Permanente, in partnership with the National Council for Mental Wellbeing and Resilient Georgia, launched the Mental Health Workforce (MHW) Accelerator program to address the heightened acute need for mental health professionals in the state. The Accelerator program supports job placement, stipends, and supervision for pre- and post-master’s associates who will work in community provider settings serving vulnerable populations.
HOUSING IS HEALTH
Housing stability is a key factor in a person’s overall health and well-being. People experiencing homelessness face a 2- to 3-time higher risk of death than housed populations. Children’s well-being is adversely impacted by living in crowded spaces and can lead to adverse health outcomes. Increasing affordable housing preserves homes that improve total health and lift residents socially and economically.
That’s why Kaiser Permanente is providing $400,000 in community grants to two metro Atlanta organizations whose work focuses on addressing homelessness in their communities:
United Way of Greater Atlanta, Inc. will receive $250,000
United Way of Greater Atlanta’s Motel to Home: Healthy Homes for Kids project will use funding to help 80 families (about 200 individuals) living in hotels, motels, and extended stays in Metro Atlanta move into permanent housing. The project assists low-income families with at least one school aged child (ages 3-18) living in unstable housing in Metro Atlanta for at least 30 days or longer move into permanent housing. Some project activities include intake, housing assessment, housing identification, case management, linkages to resources and referrals, financial assistance, and aftercare assistance such as financial coaching with saving incentives.
St Joseph’s Mercy Care Services, Inc. will receive $150,000
Funding will be used to assist Mercy Care in the administration of their “Strengthening the Medical Respite Ecosystem in Metro Atlanta, Georgia” project. The project provides recuperative care needs for homeless, medically fragile men and women in metro Atlanta.
MATERNAL RESOURCES ARE HEALTH
Kaiser Permanente is continuously searching for innovative ways to help improve maternal health outcomes in Georgia.
That’s why Kaiser Permanente is investing $1.75 million in grant funding to provide support to two organizations that are working to increase access to maternal and infant health resources in Georgia.
Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia, Inc. will receive $750,000
Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia (HMHBGA) will work to address maternal and infant health resource and care gaps in Georgia through the expansion of its Building Perinatal Professionals (BPSP) program and Perinatal Care Package (PCP) project. Each program is designed to expand free, accessible perinatal support and/or resources to low income, racial minorities, and other populations experiencing the most significant health inequities during the pregnancy and postpartum period. Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia’s mission is to improve maternal and infant health through advocacy, education, and access to vital resources.
Morehouse School of Medicine, Inc. will receive $1,000,000
The Morehouse School of Medicine will use funds to educate the public on the complications that can occur duringpregnancy, childbirth, or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy through their “maternal near miss study.” The study is a collection of stories from U.S. birthing persons of color who experienced a maternal near death and explores impacts among support persons, health care providers, families, and communities. Study results will be used to influence clinical practice, inform policy and advocacy, and advance health care strategies for birthing persons of color.
ACCESS IS HEALTH
Kaiser Permanente is supporting the work of community organizations to provide care to more Georgians across the state. In Georgia, the percentage of uninsured residents is 14% with many having incomes below 150% of the federal poverty level. About a third of Georgians, or 3.3 million, live in an area with a primary care shortage.
That’s why Kaiser Permanente is investing $1 million in grant funding to provide support to two organizations that are working to increase access to care for the uninsured and underinsured in Georgia:
Georgia Charitable Care Network will receive $350,000
Georgia Charitable Care Network and the member clinics provide critical support for uninsured individuals that are dealing with chronic conditions. Grant funding will be used to improve the clinic capacity and patient outcomes for at least 10 of Georgia’s free and charitable clinics by increasing the numbers served of patients with two or more chronic diseases. This partnership will help to support the safety net across the state and provide access to care for over 30,000 people.
Georgia Association for Primary Health Care, Inc. will receive $700,000
Georgia Association for Primary Health Care will use funds to support the Community Health Worker (CHW) project work with three Federally Qualified Health Centers in rural areas surrounding metro Atlanta. The project’s overall goals are to assist Medicaid-eligible Georgians in their reapplication or applications for benefits, with an additional specific focus on the Hispanic population.
EQUITY IS HEALTH
At Kaiser Permanente, we believe access to proper health care should be available to all Georgians, no matter where you live in our state. That’s why we are committing $1.2 million to hospitals in rural areas of Georgia to help increase access to care.
According to Georgians for a Healthy Future, rural Georgians experience health disparities in many ways: they are less likely to have job-based health insurance, may have to travel long distances to seek medical care, and experience higher rates of chronic health conditions than their suburban and urban counterparts.
Rural hospitals are often the foundations of rural communities, serving as both an economic engine and an access point for health care services. Access to quality health care leads to thriving communities, and that’s why Kaiser Permanente is investing in these hospitals.
Each of the following hospitals in rural areas of Georgia will receive a $120,000 donation from Kaiser Permanente:
- Candler County Hospital
- Colquitt Regional Medical Center
- Donalsonville Hospital
- Elbert Memorial Hospital
- Evans Memorial Hospital
- Irwin County Hospital
- Jasper Memorial Hospital
- Jefferson Hospital
- Liberty Regional Medical Center Foundation
- Wills Memorial Hospital Foundation
2022 Housing Funding
HOUSING IS HEALTH
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We understand that good health begins where people live. So, we’re partnering with local organizations and investing more than $1 million in grants to serve Metro Atlanta communities.
Kaiser Permanente has an ongoing commitment to end homelessness and preserve affordable housing by making strategic grants, shaping policy, and catalyzing innovative partnerships.
The organizations that Kaiser Permanente helped fund in 2022:
Westside Future Fund will support quality cradle-to-career education and affordable housing for vulnerable residents of Atlanta’s Historic Westside. Westside Future Fund will implement short- and long-term efforts by constructing a new multifamily housing complex and providing rental assistance to stabilize families in need.
Grant amount: $200,000
Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, Inc. will support the “2022-2023 Affordable Housing Investment in South DeKalb County and Clayton County” initiative, which will provide 30 single-family for-sale homes and single-family rental properties to primarily Black low- to moderate-income families and down payment assistance (DPA) for five additional families.
Grant amount: $200,000
Partners for HOME will support the goal of ending homelessness for 250 veterans in the City of Atlanta. Partners for HOME will employ a team of project managers targeting veterans and will work with direct service providers to devise a plan to end homelessness for this special population in collaboration with Community Solution’s Built for Zero program.
Grant amount: $150,000
Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation’s (AVLF) will help staff and volunteer attorneys to meet their clients where they are – their homes, schools, and community centers – to provide support for rental assistance, eviction prevention, and other legal services to keep families in their homes.
Grant amount: $200,000
2022 Education Funding
EDUCATION IS HEALTH
Kaiser Permanente supports training and developing nurses to make a healthy difference. We understand more nurses means more trained advocates for care, resulting in better health outcomes in our communities. Providing access to education and training empowers individuals, creating real opportunities to thrive. That’s why we’re partnering with local colleges and universities and investing $100,000 in scholarships for nursing students and graduate loan repayments.
Kaiser Permanente funded scholarships for students at these Atlanta institutions in 2022:
Georgia Gwinnett College provides financial assistance for nursing students, faculty retention through graduate loan repayments, and Student Success Coach that provides mentoring for students and faculty. Together these activities will lead to faculty retention, student success and increased health professionals in the workforce.
Grant amount: $25,000
Georgia State University Nursing Program will provide scholarship support to students across Georgia State’s nursing programs.
Grant amount: $25,000
Clayton State University will receive scholarships to Support Nursing Student Success, providing financial assistance to nursing students through the KAISER nursing scholarship.
Grant amount: $25,000
Kennesaw State University and the Kaiser Permanente Fostering Nursing Faculty and Student Excellence at KSU grant promotes quality nursing education by providing scholarships for five deserving undergraduate and graduate nursing students as well as professional education in innovative teaching methods to approximately eight faculty.
Grant amount: $25,000
2022 Maternal Health Funding
KNOWLEDGE IS HEALTH
Kaiser Permanente is supporting the work of community organizations to help improve Georgia’s maternal health outcomes by enhancing prenatal and postnatal care, linking childbirth support services, and addressing disparities in maternal care.
The maternal health organizations that Kaiser Permanente helped fund in 2022:
The Center for Black Women’s Wellness (CBWW) Doorways to Maternal Health project will work to improve outcomes among Black women and birthing persons in Atlanta during the prenatal and postnatal period through education, training, linkages to doula services for childbirth support, and stronger coordination of health care services post-delivery.
Grant amount: $96,855
Georgia Family Connection Partnership will work with Butts, Lamar, Meriwether, Spalding, Fayette and Clayton Family Connection Collaboratives to expand and enhance community-based work to improve women’s health and reduce the rate of low birthweight births. This Promoting Women’s Health: Low Birthweight Prevention Cohort project builds on the Low Birthweight (LBW) Prevention Project, which has assisted counties in development, implementation, and evaluation of local strategies to improve women’s health and reduce LBW and infant mortality by addressing socioenvironmental factors of health.
Grant amount: $99,000