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SHARE Receives Blue and You Grant

Whether helping train nurses and other medical professionals, promoting physical activity, or supporting behavioral health programs and palliative care, the Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas is touching the lives of many Arkansans. The Foundation recently awarded a total of $3,467,872 in grants to 40 health improvement programs in Arkansas.

“Our grants this year went to programs across state that address issues and needs that organizations have identified as important to their communities. These include physical and mental health programs for all ages, opportunities to participate in exercise and good nutrition, and building the future medical workforce that will care for all of our citizens,” said Patrick O’Sullivan, executive director of the Blue & You Foundation.

Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield established the Blue & You Foundation in 2001 as a charitable foundation to promote better health in Arkansas. The Blue & You Foundation awards grants annually to non-profit or governmental organizations and programs that positively affect the health of Arkansas.
In its 18 years of operation, the Blue & You Foundation has awarded more than $36 million to 1,922 health improvement programs in Arkansas, located in 248 communities and in every county in the state.

For the 2020 year, Blue & You Foundation awarded the SHARE Foundation $80,100 for its Palliative Care of South Arkansas program through Life Touch Hospice. SHARE Foundation was one of 40 organizations, out of 261 grant applications chosen. Life Touch Hospice Executive Director, Jenifer McLelland says, “This grant gives us the opportunity to provide exceptional, compassionate palliative care to patients with serious illnesses. The passion of my staff is to help all people who are in need. Palliative Care opens the door to reaching patients that are still seeking treatment and are not at the end of life.”

For individuals living with serious illness, and for their caregiving family and friends, palliative care offers medical and related treatment towards living as well and as fully as possible. This type of care is often misunderstood and mistakenly synonymous with end-of-life care. Palliative Care of South Arkansas will provide palliative care services to patients and family members facing life-threatening illness across 5 area counties. The program will provide relief from the symptoms, pain, physical stress, and mental stress at any stage of illness.

For more information, contact Life Touch Hospice at 870-862-0337.

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