The Greenville Health Authority (GHA) Board of Trustees gave final approval Tuesday to guidelines for its “Healthy Greenville 2036” project, a plan to reinvest $80 million into health-targeted local grants over the next 20 years.
The initiative will fund approximately $4 million in grants each year for the next 20 years for targeted projects into health-related care, research and education that improves the health of Greenville County residents.
The GHA Board of Trustees is the new operating name for what was previously named the Greenville Health System (GHS) Board of Trustees. The name changed as part of a governance shift which moved the health system from a public, not-for-profit entity to a private, not-for-profit entity.
Areas to be targeted include access to health care, mental health, healthy eating/exercise as a prevention for many diseases and also social determinants, the social and economic factors that impact the health of a community. These areas were chosen because they were identified as top concerns in the 2016 Community Health Needs Assessment.
“We don’t want to tackle any one disease so much as we want to fund projects that offer solutions to the root problems that give rise to those diseases,” said Lisa Stevens, the GHA chair. “By working together and thinking outside the box, we can better address issues before they become problems.”
“We want to take advantage of this unique long-term investment opportunity to make changes that are significant enough to actually move the needle and dramatically improve our community’s health,” said Stevens. “With intensive targeted work over the next 20 years, we have the opportunity to become the healthiest county in America by 2036, and so that is our vision. Greenville County should never settle for being anything less than the best.”
The deadline for applicants’ initial letter of intent is May 15. Following evaluation of the letters of intent, select organizations will be invited to submit a full application for funding. Funding will be awarded to those applicants who best meet Healthy Greenville’s criteria, demonstrate a track record of success with previous projects or programs and are able to articulate how their project will move Greenville County toward the vision of being the healthiest county in America by 2036. Collaborative, cross-functional multi-year projects are encouraged.
Community information meetings will be held at the following locations next week:
• Greenville Memorial Hospital Board Room, 12-1 p.m., Monday, April 24
• Furman University Chapel, Garden Room, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Monday, April 24
• Hillcrest Memorial Hospital, Conference Room E, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 26
• Greer Memorial Medical Campus, Medical Office Building 340, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Thursday, April 27
To be eligible to receive a grant, an organization must be one of the following: a non-profit with 501(c)3 tax-exempt status, a healthcare provider regardless of affiliation, academic institution, coalitions or collaboratives and/or government agencies. Programs must directly benefit residents of Greenville County through health-related care, research or education initiatives. The minimum grant will be $250,000 per year, with multi-year collaborative projects encouraged.
For details about the initiative and how to apply, visit ghs.org/healthygreenville2036.