Investing in the future health of our communities

The Boston Scientific Foundation has one overriding mission: to improve health and create educational opportunities for the economically disadvantaged, particularly in the communities where Boston Scientific employees live and work in the United States.

Last year, the Boston Scientific Foundation donated $2.19 million in grants, scholarships and humanitarian aid. Those funds included health-specific grants: financial donations to community nonprofits and programs aimed at improving the health of those in need. Organizations that focus on cancer, diabetes, respiratory, cardiovascular, neurological, gastrointestinal and urologic diseases and disorders - and emphasize disease awareness, prevention, diagnosis and quality of care - may apply for grants each year.

"These are all areas that are central to Boston Scientific's work," says Kay Adair, president of the Boston Scientific Foundation. "We share a desire to improve the health of our communities. By engaging employees in our comprehensive grant review and selection process, we're able to fund programs that have local support and deep, meaningful impacts."

In 2023, 27 nonprofits received health grants from the Boston Scientific Foundation, including Southside Community Health Services. In time for the announcement of new health grantees for 2024, members of the Southside staff shared their thoughts on how the funding has furthered their reach over the past year.

"Health grants help us keep programs alive"

Southside Community Health Services is a clinic that supports underserved individuals and families in the south Minneapolis area.

"We are a health center that knows many of our patients need extra support to achieve their best health," says Ann Cazaban, the executive director of Southside. "More than a third of our patients don't have health insurance, and grant funding allows us to provide those extra services to our patients at no charge."

As a recipient of Boston Scientific Foundation grants in the past, Cazaban says she appreciates the straightforward application process, which involves having a face-to-face conversation with Boston Scientific employees. "I could tell that they were excited to be involved, to have a direct role in choosing grant recipients and to learn about the impact that the funding would have on the community Southside serves," she says.

This time around, the team at Southside was especially looking for help in financing Southside's Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES) program, which teaches patients with diabetes practical skills to better manage their condition. The ultimate goal is to help reduce hospitalizations and prevent vision loss, neuropathy, infection and other health risks.

As a result of receiving a 2023 grant, Southside's diabetes care and education specialist, Ranelle Kirchner, was able to develop a curriculum for the DSMES program so that it could become fully accredited. Now, Southside can partner with other organizations to provide its patients with even more support. For instance, the primary language spoken by patients at Southside is Spanish. By working with a local nonprofit called Urban Ventures that provides educational opportunities for young people and families and has a large Spanish-speaking clientele, Southside is able to reach even more people in the community with crucial information about diabetes and staying healthy.

"I've seen firsthand the many ways this type of program really changes the trajectory for patients, helping them take control of their health and giving them the extra support they need to change their outcomes," says Kirchner. "Health grants like the one we got from the Boston Scientific Foundation help us keep programs like this alive, which has amazing ripple effects in the community at large."

Learn more about the Boston Scientific Foundationand how it's working to expand access to quality health care and education.

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