The Health Foundation

Scholarship - The Health Foundation provides scholarships to students entering allied Health care professions who have expressed an interest in working in wilkes or surrounding counties in western north carolina. This program helps decrease The percentage of people living in poverty, as Health car professions typically provide better living wage jobs. Academic acheivement and wealth correspond to better Health outcomes as wealthier people have better opportunities to live healthier lives. Wilkes county also experiences shortages of Health professionals and this provides an entry point to recruit Health care professionals, which in turn, increases access to care in a rural, underserved community.

Access to care - people in rural communities are less likely to have access to Health services due to shortages of providers and barriers to care such as transportation and cost. The Health Foundation owns and manages a medical park conveniently located within one-quarter mile of The local hospital which serves as a hub of Health care delivery. The thriving medical park has a variety of tenants including primary medical care, medical specialists, dental care, and social support services. The site also connects to The yadkin river greenway and hosts a pre-school playground and an adult exercise equipment zone. In addition, we engage in funding strategies that promote access to care in other locations and through both mobile and telemedicine.

Prevention - with an understanding that Health is affected by The places people live, work, play, pray, and learn, The Foundation utilitzes a formal collective impact framework coupled with human-centered design to lead The following local coalitions addressing healthy eating, active living, resiliency, and opioid use disorder:the wilkes resiliency collaberative, addressing The generational traumas caused by abuse, neglect, mental illness, family separation and their effects on Health outcomes (adverse childhood experiences).the community opioid response and education team, a broad cross-sector collaborative identifying and implementing community-based strategies to mitigate The effects of substance use disorders and mental Health disorders. This includes The creation of a crisis intervention team to align ems and law enforcement responses to 9-1-1 and 9-8-8.the outdoor economy working group, a broad cross-sector collaborative implementing a 15-year outdoor infrastructure plan to improve upward economic mobility, enhance outdoor amenitites, and attract residents and visitors to partake in outdoor recreation activities.