Grants help youth programs in West Oahu

WAIANAE, Hawaii — Kaiser Permanente of Hawaii has awarded nearly $100,000 in community benefit grants to Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, a federally qualified health center serving communities in West Oahu. Funding will go toward 2 WCCHC programs that aim to improve access to health care services for children and teens living in West Oahu.

Inspiring hope through Sources of Strength, a program that aims to prevent youth suicide on the Waianae coast. The organization will receive a $44,619 grant. Partnering with the University of Hawaii at Manoa Department of Psychiatry, this program trains Waianae Coast youth in a strengths-based program that fosters peer support systems, supportive relationships, and a healthy community.

Sources of Support Pods, a program to improve Waianae coast youth access to comprehensive school-based health care during the pandemic, will receive a $55,052 grant. The program focuses on addressing challenges teens face in receiving health care services due to limited secure and confidential telehealth appointments and lack of privacy. The grant supports the development and launch of Sources of Support telehealth pods at school-based health centers at Waianae High and Nanakuli High schools. The SOS Pods will be staffed by WCCHC medical assistants who will help students access safe, confidential, teen-centered medical and behavioral health services with licensed health care providers using clinic-based, teleconferencing services.

“Improving access to health care for keiki in West Oahu is critical to ensuring healthy development and bright futures, especially during the pandemic,” said Greg Christian, president for Kaiser Permanente Hawaii Health Plan and Hospitals. “As we prepare to better serve West Oahu with the opening of our West Oahu Medical Office at Kapolei this April, we are fortunate to partner with Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center to improve the health of the surrounding community.”

This set of grants is the latest in a series of contributions from Kaiser Permanente to help residents throughout Hawaii receive vital support services in response to the socioeconomic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the last 12 months, the health care organization has gifted over $2 million in current or planned grants to organizations serving communities across the state, and has hosted 18 community support events including food distributions that have provided over 320,000 pounds of food to more than 8,000 local families.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.4 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health.