Dedham Wins Community Health Grants From Beth Israel Deaconess Needham

DEDHAM, MA - As part of its longstanding commitment to the community, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Needham on Monday announced that it awarded $76,000 in grant funding to 10 community-based organizations, including three in Dedham.

The grants are part of BID Needham’s community benefits program and are intended to support programs that address community health priorities and meaningfully impact populations and community members within the BID Needham service area that face the greatest health inequities. Criteria included three focus areas that were identified during the hospital’s most recent Community Health Needs Assessment, completed in July 2019 - Behavioral Health, Chronic and Complex Conditions, and Access to Care and Social Determinants of Health.

“BID Needham is truly a community hospital, and we realize that the organizations we support through our Community Benefits program are at the heart of our community,” said John Fogarty, President of BID Needham. “We are proud to support these organizations and the important work they are doing to reduce health disparities and inequities for those in our community. We are glad to put resources behind this work to support our shared goal to have a greater impact in the communities we serve.”

The following organizations were selected to receive a multi-year grant in the amount of $6,000 per year, valued at $18,000 over three years:

Dedham Council on Aging: The Dedham Council on Aging provides social services, educational and recreational programs to the over-55 population of the Town of Dedham. The grant will provide funding for a social worker to run late-day and evening support groups for seniors who are bereaved, struggling with caregiving responsibilities, and those with mental health challenges.

Dedham Food Pantry: The Dedham Food Pantry is a community-based food pantry that provides food for Dedham residents who are experiencing food insecurity. The grant will support food purchases to accommodate the increased need for food since the pandemic.

Riverside Community Care: Riverside Community Care offers a broad range of behavioral healthcare and human services, including mental healthcare, developmental and brain injury services, youth and early childhood programs and addiction treatment. Funding will be used to provide advanced psychological and behavioral trainings to their Home-Based service clinicians and staff. Trainings will include behavioral interviewing, solution-focused therapy, self-injurious behavior, psychosis, adoption, transgender youth, substance use and eating disorders.

Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital Needham is a licensed 58-bed acute care community hospital. BID Needham has served residents in Needham and surrounding communities for more than 100 years.

The hospital has been recognized by several organizations for quality and safety, including five-out-of-five stars from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an “A” grade from the Leapfrog Group, the Gold Seal of Approval from The Joint Commission and the 2019 American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Quality Achievement Award.

For more information about BID Needham, please visit this link.

BID Needham is a part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, a health care system that brings together academic medical centers and teaching hospitals, community and specialty hospitals, more than 4,800 physicians and 36,000 employees in a shared mission to expand access to great care and advance the science and practice of medicine through groundbreaking research and education. For more information about Beth Israel Lahey Health, please visit www.bilh.org.