Partners HealthCare®

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Community Programs

Partners HealthCare is committed to working with community residents and organizations to make measurable, sustainable improvements in the health status of underserved populations.  Partners and its hospitals are making a difference in the communities in which we live and work through initiatives on workforce development, prevention and access to health care. In addition, Partners hospitals have provided care to more than 100,000 uninsured and Medicaid patients annually.

Partners Community Benefit programs and grants focus on three important areas:

• Enhancing Access to Health Care
• Building Tomorrow’s Health Care Workforce
• Improving Health Through Prevention

 

Enhancing Access to Health Care

Partners and its hospitals are committed to increasing access to quality care regardless of patients’ ability to pay, insurance status, or other potential barriers to care.

One example of our commitment to increasing access to health care is our involvement with the Bank of America Loan Repayment Program.

Beginning with a $5 million commitment from Bank of America and $1.7 million from the Commonwealth, Massachusetts has embarked on a substantial effort to increase primary care capacity in community health centers through an educational loan repayment plan to expand the state’s supply of primary care physicians. Partners has committed more than $1.25 million to this effort and Neighborhood Health Plan and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of Massachusetts have provided additional financial support. To date, more than 100 doctors and nurse practitioners participate in the Loan Repayment Program that has expanded health center capacity for more than 190,000 patients.

Building Tomorrow’s Health Care Workforce

In a state where a strong life sciences sector is economically vital, Partners and its hospitals are committed to creating training and development opportunities for people in the communities we serve, building the health care workforce of the future and recognizing the well-established link between educational attainment and health status later in life. 

A few examples of our work to build tomorrow’s health care workforce include:

• Student Success Jobs Program (SSJP). Brigham and Women's Hospital’s youth programs are designed to reduce young people's at-risk behaviors during after school hours, increase their developmental assets, and promote stable and trusting relationships between students and responsible adults. SSJP introduces high school students in the 10th through 12th grades from the city’s lowest income communities to careers in health care, science, and medicine by offering paid internships within the hospital, and by providing the guidance of health care professionals who serve as role models and mentors.
• MGH Youth Program. The MGH Youth Program operates on the belief that there is a direct correlation between educational attainment, economic potential, and overall health status.  For 15 years, MGH’s Center for Community Health Improvement (CCHI) has committed to engaging underserved and underrepresented Boston youth in a variety of opportunities specifically focused around science and health care career options. Within the MGH Youth Program are key jobs initiatives.

Since 1991, Massachusetts General Hospital has employed students from East Boston High School, Timilty Middle School, and the Health Careers Academy.  Revere, Charlestown and Chelsea HealthCare Centers also participate in this program. Through programs such as Summer Jobs for Youth and SummerWorks, MGH provides young people with employment in supportive work environments.

Improving Health Through Prevention

Partners and its hospitals provide effective, coordinated and measurable local support to address and prevent socio-medical problems that face our communities. We employ a wide range of strategies, including raising awareness, advocating for public policy changes, implementing prevention programs, and successfully developing additional treatment resources to help community residents stay healthy. 

Examples of our work toward improving health through prevention include:

• Revere CARES. Revere CARES Coalition is committed to reducing substance abuse, especially among young people, and to building a safer, healthier community.  The Coalition includes city government, police, schools, Fire Department, Mass. Dept. of Social Services, North Suffolk Mental Health, YMCA, Chamber of Commerce, MGH, residents, parents, youth, and elected officials.
• Police Action Counseling Team - PACT. The goal of the Police Action Counseling Team (PACT), founded in 1998, is to reduce the immediate impact of trauma on children who witness violence in Chelsea.  Ultimately, PACT seeks to reduce the effects of trauma on a child's ongoing development, and to interrupt the cycle of family violence.  PACT is a partnership between the MGH Chelsea HealthCare Center, the Chelsea Police Department, the MGH Child Protection Consultation Counseling Team, and the MA Department of Social Services (DSS).
• HAVEN. Since 1997, HAVEN at MGH has provided free and confidential support to those affected by unhealthy, abusive relationships. With offices in Boston, Chelsea, and Revere, HAVEN services MGH patients, families, employees, and visitors. HAVEN advocates help victims plan for safety and find resources.