6 New Community Grants awarded by BCH Foundation

In support of Boulder Community Health’s vision of partnering to create and care for the healthiest community in the nation, the BCH Foundation established the Community Collaboration Fund in 2018.

Whether it’s partnering in support of behavioral health, playing a role in caring for underserved populations, improving patient care or educating our community, the BCH Foundation is redefining the power of partnership to improve the quality of life for all in our community.

This month, we are excited to announce we approved $148,750 in funding for this year, and additional funding for some multi-year proposals, for six incredible community organizations including two brand new partnerships and four continuing partnerships with the following organizations:

• 3rd Law Dance – Dance for Parkinson’s Program (New!)
• Blue Sky Bridge
• Boulder County Aids Project (BCAP)
• Boulder Shelter for the Homeless
• Boulder Valley Humane Society (New!)
• Love for Lily

“We know not everyone has equal or equitable access to health care, and that multiple factors outside of health care determine our mental and physical health. While we cannot solve for all the health barriers the greater Boulder community faces, the Foundation can enhance access to health care, and provide social and economic support to improve the health and well-being of BCH patients and the larger patient community through our new funding focus areas.”

-Riley Bright, BCH Foundation Program Officer

Congratulations and much gratitude to these partners for helping us toward achieving our vision.

3rd Law Dance – Dance for Parkinson’s Program

This is a brand-new partnership in 2023 and will offer the supportive movement benefits of dance to our patients experiencing mobility concerns.

The D4PD program is offered to people living with Parkinson’s Disease and others who have chronic or acute conditions that inhibit movement. Dance has repeatedly been found to provide clinically meaningful improvements in motor scores for people living with Parkinson’s.

People diagnosed with Parkinson’s can often become isolated and sedentary. The pandemic exacerbated this. Importantly, along with the clinical benefits of movement, the Program offers a sense of community that is highly valued by participants and the friends and family members who join them.

Blue Sky Bridge

This is a multi-year partnership with the Foundation that supports the work of the BCH Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) to provide care for the Boulder Community by providing access to comprehensive medical exams for child victims of child abuse. In the last year, Blue Sky Bridge completed 26 medical exams for victims of child abuse.

Boulder County Aids Project (BCAP)

This multi-year partnership with BCH’s Beacon Center for Infectious Disease at BCH support two collaborative programs:

1) The HIV Care Continuation for People Living with HIV (PLHIV) Experiencing Housing Insecurity Program provides case management and insurance navigation services to PLHIV experiencing medical vulnerabilities to help prevent hospitalization/re-hospitalization and improve treatment adherence to improve health outcomes.

2) The Medical Intervention for People Who Use/Inject Drugs (PWU/ID) Program serves PWU/ID and/or are experiencing homelessness who are living with or at risk of acquiring HIV/HCV needing harm reduction services, testing, and linkage to medical care through BCAP’s syringe access and street outreach services.

Boulder Shelter for the Homeless

For the third year, this partnership supports engagement between a BCH case manager and a designated Boulder Shelter case manager to engage and expedite housing for medically vulnerable patients. So far, BCH has referred 88 individuals into the partnership and we have successfully collaborated to secure stable housing for 25 individuals.

Boulder Valley Humane Society

This brand-new partnership will create funds to cover the costs of temporary boarding for pets of BCH hospitalized clients who may otherwise forego medical care because they don’t have the financial resources to care for their animal.

Love for Lily

This multi-year partnership supports the BCH Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU patients and staff with education, support groups, micro-grants, and more, all in the name of offering community and support for patients and families in the NICU. This includes:

Providing social, emotional, and logistical support to families with babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Units of area hospitals.

Providing non-medical services that aim to connect parents to other NICU families and to community resources that may reduce the incidence of postpartum mood disorders

Educating and empowering the families of NICU infants to take a proactive and involved role in the care of their children while in the NICU to help alleviate feelings of helplessness and fear and to strengthen bonds between babies and parents.

About the BCH Foundation

Established in 1978, the Boulder Community Health (BCH) Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The Foundation exists to inspire giving in support of BCH to enhance the quality and availability of health care in our community.

In 2023, the Foundation updated our funding framework to align with BCH’s strategic priorities by highlighting three core areas that help make up an equitable health system—our Community, our Patients, and our Workforce.

Our Community: We believe everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to reach their full health potential, both physically and mentally.

Our Patients: We believe providing the community with the highest value in health care requires an innovative, patient-centered environment.

Our Workforce: We believe it’s imperative to invest in the professional growth and physical and mental health of BCH’s greatest asset—the staff and physicians providing care to the community.