Blue Cross and Blue Shield giving

[From Philanthropy News Digest] In an effort to support the health and wellness of their local communities, thirty-nine independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies awarded more than $208 million in grants during 2009 — a year-over-year increase of $13 million — a new report from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association finds.

The report, Investing in America's Health (82 pages, PDF), found that grants awarded by BCBS companies were used to subsidize healthcare services, develop innovative patient safety initiatives, and launch targeted intervention programs designed to combat childhood obesity and diabetes. Recipients included the Florida Health Literacy Grants Program, which was created by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida and the Florida Literacy Coalition to improve the health literacy level of Florida residents; the Health Center Initiative, which was created by the Horizon Foundation for New Jersey to provide financial and technical resources to nonprofit community-directed organizations that provide healthcare services regardless of a patient's insurance status or ability to pay; and the Tennessee Center for Patient Safety, which uses evidence-based strategies to improve the reliability, safety, and quality of care received by patients in Tennessee hospitals.

Erie Community Foundation grants

The Erie Community Foundation is now accepting Health and Environment grant proposals. This category encompasses requests from nonprofits working to promote improved health outcomes.

Services funded may include:

• Health centers serving patients who are uninsured, under-insured or receive Medical Assistance
• Services improving child and maternal health outcomes
• Agencies promoting healthy lifestyles, nutrition and improved fitness among children and youth
• Organizations handling end-of-life and palliative care
• Home health care organizations
• Environment requests from organizations working toward improved land-use planning, preservation and protection of the natural environment, resources and wildlife, and energy efficiency

Grants are announced by Oct. 4, 2010. Deadline is July 16, 2010.

If you have questions, e-mail David González, program officer or call (814) 454-0843.

Physicians Foundation grants - Leadership and Health IT

[From Philanthropy News Digest] The Physicians Foundation is committed to helping bring the voice of physicians to national-level conversations and debate on issues that affect practicing physicians and their patients.

Through a new grantmaking program, the foundation will support new approaches and models to provide for the ongoing professional development of physicians as leaders in the healthcare arena. Specifically, the foundation will fund innovative programs for physician leadership development and skills-building activities, which may include the development, evaluation, and implementation of new programs, curriculum and content, and program resources. The foundation also will consider funding projects that help organizations develop the internal capacity to do this work on an ongoing basis. The program will not fund existing continuing medical education offerings or other clinical education.

Health Information Technology in Practice: Toolkit Grants initiative is to support physicians' adoption of certified electronic health record systems through the development of tools and resources. Through this initiative, the foundation will make grants to support projects focused on the development, testing, and dissemination of practical, efficient tools and resources to aid in physicians' adoption and meaningful use of certified EHRs. Projects can be focused specifically on practice readiness or selection and implementation of technology, or projects can be more broadly designed to address a variety of needs. Tools and educational resources should be geared towards small practices (twenty-five physicians or fewer). Products developed as part of these grants must be replicable in terms of reasonable financial cost and efficient use of human resources. In addition, projects should complement and/or support the work of the newly established Regional Extension Centers.

Applicant organizations must be nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations or educational institutions located in the United States. Private foundations as defined in IRC section 509 (a) are not eligible.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Seeks Ideas for Improving Quality and Value in Health Care

[From Philanthropy News Digest] Deadline: May 19, 2010 (Brief Proposals)

As part of its commitment to ensuring that all Americans receive high-quality, high-value health care, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has announced a Call for Proposals for Improving Quality and Value in Health Care: Ideas From the Field.

The purpose of this solicitation is to study efforts in the following specific areas in order to understand how they may lead to better healthcare quality and lower costs: value-based purchasing; data collection and aggregation for performance measurement; quality improvement support; and public reporting of provider performance. (The foundation anticipates a separate funding initiative to study payment reform efforts and will not entertain payment reform-oriented proposals under this Call for Proposals.) Projects may include short-term evaluations of local, state, or federal policy changes or private sector innovations by employers, health plans, or others. They may also include research and policy analysis that demonstrate the likely effect of projects in the eligible topic areas.

The foundation is also interested in supporting public opinion research that provides quantitative and qualitative insights into what Americans think about these concepts, as well as other potential changes in the way health care is paid for in America. Applicant organizations must be based in the U.S. or its territories. Preference will be given to applicants that are either public entities or nonprofit organizations which are tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Grants will be awarded in amounts of up to $300,000 each for up to three years. Up to $3 million in total grants will be awarded. Preference will be given to shorter projects.

AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation Announces Connections for Cardiovascular Health Grant Program

[From Philanthropy News Digest] Deadline: July 31, 2010

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation has received a $25 million charitable contribution from biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca for Connections for Cardiovascular Health, a new program designed to help improve cardiovascular health in the United States. The program will award grants of at least $150,000 to U.S.-based nonprofit organizations that are doing innovative work in the field of cardiovascular health.

Applicant organizations should be engaged in work that addresses patient cardiovascular health issues, seeks to address an unmet need related to cardiovascular health in the community, responds to the urgency around addressing cardiovascular disease or conditions contributing to cardiovascular disease, and improves the quality of patients' and caregivers' lives in connection with the services provided and work done. Organizations can learn more and apply for a grant at the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation Web site.

Helping Hands Grants

[From Philanthropy News Digest] The American Psychiatric Foundation's Helping Hands Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 each to medical schools for mental health service projects that are created and managed by medical students, particularly in underserved minority communities. These projects can be conducted in partnership with community agencies or in conjunction with ongoing medical school outreach activities.

The program was established to encourage medical students to participate in community service activities, particularly those focused on underserved populations; raise awareness of mental illness and the importance of early recognition of illness; and build an interest amongst medical students in psychiatry and working in underserved communities.

Medical schools are eligible to apply for the grants, and all projects must be conducted under the supervision of medical faculty. Medical students who participate in the program must be in their second, third, or fourth year of medical school at the time they are engaged in community service. Grants will not fund services beyond basic mental health screenings and referrals, and funded projects should not last more than a year. Projects addressing the needs of underserved populations will receive special consideration. Innovative, new, or replicable ideas are encouraged.

Visit the APF Web site for complete program information.

Equipment to Enhance Training for Health Professionals

This funding opportunity is one of many for the Equipment to Enhance Training for Health Professionals (EETHP) program, hereby known as EETHP Equipment Initiative. Twenty-four health professional training programs comprise this initiative. As defined by this program, a Health Professional Training Program is a program authorized under Titles III, VII and VIII of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act which focuses all or in part on the training of health professionals. HRSA is announcing the availability of funds to support multiple programs in the purchase of health professions training equipment. While the overall goals of the EETHP Equipment Initiative are the same for each program, applicants must satisfy the statutory requirements of the health professions training program under which they are applying for equipment. Accordingly, a different funding announcement is being offered for each of the 21 eligible programs that comprise the Initiative. Under this announcement number HRSA is announcing this initiative for those entities eligible for the EETHP-Primary Care Training and Enhancement grant program only. The equipment requested under this announcement should support activities and the goals of the Primary Care Training and Enhancement program. To be eligible for this funding opportunity, an applicant does not need to be a current grantee, but must be eligible to apply for the Primary Care Training and Enhancement grant program. The Primary Care Training and Enhancement grant program focuses on Family Medicine, General Internal Medicine, and General Pediatric physicians and primary care Physician Assistants as a means of improving access to care. The program supports academic administrative units, residency training, predoctoral training, faculty development training and physician assistant training program areas. This specific announcement is for equipment to support training of health professionals through adademic administrative units in primary care.

Expected Number of Awards:	200
Estimated Total Program Funding:	$50,000,000

Deadline: May 17, 2010