Improving Health and Well-Being for All
Everyone in Southeast Minnesota deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. At United Way, we help people overcome barriers to good health by improving access to nutritious food and quality healthcare, including dental care, mental health services, and prescription drugs.
Our health is essential to our overall quality of life. But for many people in Southeast Minnesota, the potential to live a healthy life is limited by where they live, how much money they earn, or discrimination they face.
32%
of Olmsted County adults have delayed receiving healthcare services.
1 in 3
adults in Olmsted County have experienced depression, anxiety, or other mental health challenges.
Nearly 6%
of households in Olmsted County are food insecure.
What We Do
Working with community partners, United Way takes a comprehensive approach to improving health. We invest hundreds of thousands of dollars annually into Southeast Minnesota nonprofit programs that improve health access and provide nutritious and culturally-specific meals. We also offer direct access to services that can save local residents money on prescription drug costs, regardless of their insurance status.
We invest over $200,000 annually in programs that remove barriers for local residents to access healthcare. Our Health Access grants focus on improving access to three areas of healthcare that our community has identified as high priority: affordable medical and dental care, mental health and addiction recovery, and direct support services for people with disabilities.
Current Health Access Funded Partners
Independent Living Services
The Bear Creek Independent Living Services (BCILS) program supports people who have disabilities to live in locations of their choosing, with people of their choosing. BCILS staff assist individuals in many areas of their lives, depending on the person's goals and needs at the time. For example, staff may assist clients with housekeeping, cooking, budgeting, personal hygiene, and healthcare management. Staff also help clients access public transportation so that they can connect with other community members. Bear Creek staff teach skills that allow people to do more things without staff assistance, so each person can be empowered to live as independently and safely as possible.
Partner: Bear Creek Services
Dental Home for Underserved Children
The program serves children who lack dental insurance and who otherwise could not afford routine exams, dental cleanings, and comprehensive care. Staff use both school-based clinics and the CDHS office in Rochester to ensure that time, money, and transportation are not barriers to receiving care. By providing a full suite of free dental services during school visits and office follow-ups, CDHS is removing barriers to care and improving health equity for the youngest members of our community.
Partner: Children’s Dental Health Services
Pediatric Services
The Pediatric Services program provides routine vaccinations and other preventative care, acute medical care, and wrap-around social services for children in Olmsted County. This program establishes a pediatric clinic at CHSI's Rochester office with oversight from a board-certified pediatrician. It also hosts monthly pediatric clinics with a special focus on children of immigrants, seasonal farm workers, and other uninsured patients. CHSI employs a diverse and dedicated group of clinical and support staff who understand the barriers to healthcare and actively work to make patients feel welcome and safe.
Partner: Community Health Service, Inc
Medical Transportation Program
Each year, Elder Network staff coordinate approximately 1,850 rides for clients, prioritizing clients who live in low-income households and/or in rural areas of Olmsted County, those who are immigrants, and seniors who are BIPOC. Transportation is provided by volunteer drivers to and from crucial health care appointments such as medical, dental, and mental health appointments, medical equipment fitting appointments, and the pharmacy. Elder Network's Medical Transportation Program is tailored to the needs of seniors by breaking down typical logistic and financial barriers to service for seniors. Clients can book an affordable ride for a specific day and time and trust that a friendly volunteer will call to remind them the night before and be there to walk them door-to-door on the day of service.
Partner: Elder Network
Auxiliary Services for East African Women
Pamoja Women offers monthly health education programming on health issues facing East African women, assists with navigation through healthcare resources, offers interpretation and provides transportation. Often, the people served by Pamoja Women don't understand how to access the healthcare they need, face language barriers that prevent them from receiving healthcare and particularly elders don't have transportation to access healthcare. The goal of the Pamoja Women Auxiliary Services program is to ensure that women and children of East African descent can understand and access the health and wellness resources available to them without barriers. The program offers monthly health education groups, individualized medical navigation services, interpretation, and transportation for medical appointments.
Partner: Pamoja Women (fiscal sponsor: Rochester Area Foundation)
Street Medicine
The Zumbro Valley Medical Society (ZVMS) Street Medicine Initiative brings healthcare out of the traditional clinical setting and directly to people experiencing unstable housing. It involves caring for individuals in their own environments, rather than requiring them to adapt to medicines conventional settings and structures. Central to their program is a recognition of the need to build trust and gain rapport in serving a population that has faced trauma and stigma. To achieve the ZVMS Street Medicine Initiatives goal of offering high quality, compassionate healthcare to people experiencing houselessness, they provide direct care through visits to encampments, under bridges, on street corners, and in other locations where people might be; and through specialized one-day clinics in the community throughout the year.
Partner: Zumbro Valley Medical Society Foundation
Community Health Assessment and Planning Support
The Community Health Assessment and Planning (CHAP) process is about improving the health and well-being of residents in Olmsted County. Every three years, the community conducts a health needs assessment to determine Olmsted County’s leading health priorities; formulate a plan to address the needs; and publish an annual progress report. United Way has been a longtime funder and partner of CHAP.
Partner: Olmsted County
Sources
Olmsted County Community Health Needs Assessment. (2022). Olmsted County Public Health Services, Mayo Clinic, and Olmsted Medical Center.