Health
The Coleman Foundation aspires to reduce health disparities and promote well-being for everyone in the Greater Chicago region. To achieve this vision, the Foundation invests in accessible, equitable, and preventive health initiatives.
Click here for a full list of recent program grants.
About the Health Program
The Coleman Foundation’s Health (formerly Health and Rehabilitation) program has taken many shapes since the program began funding cancer research and treatment in the 1980s. It has since evolved in response to community health priorities and new opportunities within the field to strengthen care delivery and improve access to high-quality and culturally relevant services.
The Coleman Foundation’s Approach
Community health has always been central to the Foundation’s Health program. From supporting cutting-edge cancer research, improvements to palliative care, COVID-19 responsive initiatives, and much more, we’ve witnessed how barriers to innovative health services can widen disparities. The Coleman Foundation has refined its Health strategy with an approach that recognizes the drivers of these disparities within and outside the healthcare system.
In the Greater Chicago region, social factors can vary by ZIP Code, contributing to a troubling 30-year life expectancy gap across certain geographies. We support holistic solutions to ensure everyone has the opportunity to live up to their fullest health potential.
Our renewed Health strategy centers on two goals: (1) Adopting and strengthening innovative care delivery models, and (2) Reducing barriers to health services.
Goal #1: Adopting and Strengthening Innovative Care Delivery Models
Our Health program invests in care delivery models that meet individuals at the community level, ensuring services are innovative, comprehensive, and preventive.
Examples of Care Delivery Models under this strategy could include:
- School-based health centers – providing students (and their families) with various programs and services on school premises or at off-site centers.
- Food as Medicine – integrating healthy food initiatives into other health and human services programs.
- Integrated programming – weaving together various health-related programs and services (e.g., behavioral health within primary care).
- Mobile programs – utilizing vans and other technologies to deliver evidence-based health programming at culturally relevant locations.
- Microsites – streamlining health services within trusted, community-based organizations that provide other social and human services.
Goal #2: Reducing Barriers to Health Services
Improved access to high-quality health services leads to improved health outcomes. Our Health program supports initiatives and organizations that tackle barriers such as cost, navigating insurance, and education about services available.
Examples of approaches under this strategy could include:
- Leveraging Community Health Workers (CHWs) – providing culturally appropriate outreach, education, engagement, and health-related services to residents.
- Improving health insurance utilization – expanding health insurance coverage and assisting residents in understanding how to use benefits through health care navigation.
- Reforming health care – advancing innovations in health care delivery, reimbursement, and payment methods to meet health-related social needs of under-resourced residents.
