Caring for Our Communities Program Makes a Difference for Jennie Edmundson Patients

Many of these people come to the Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital Emergency Department for care, but it isn’t always the best place to serve their recurrent needs.

That’s when the Caring for Our Communities (CFOC) program steps in. Created in 2012, CFOC connects people with community health and behavioral health “coaches” who will help them find appropriate health care, access existing community resources, obtain health-related education and affordable medications, and navigate the health care exchange.

CFOC is based at Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital and is available throughout Western Iowa at no cost. With the addition of a community health worker, people at risk due to the impact of social, economic or environmental factors now have an advocate who will help determine how to better address each individual’s needs.

Philanthropy is the cornerstone of CFOC.

“We could not function without the generous financial support of the communities we serve,” said Lorrie Reddish, CFOC program director. “It enables us to provide a growing number of services to an ever-expanding population in need.”

Each year, more than 30 key stakeholders and community partners take part in the CFOC effort to link under-resourced individuals with available local resources. 

Lead organizations include:

• All Care (Community) Health Center
• Connections Area Agency on Aging
• Heartland Family Service
• Horizon Behavioral Health Agency
• Iowa Legal Aid
• Jennie Edmundson Hospital Foundation
• Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital
• Methodist Physicians Clinic
• Pottawattamie County Public Health Department

“The people helped through Caring for Our Communities are often the most vulnerable, simply because they don’t know where to turn,” said Tara Slevin, vice president of Volunteer Services and Foundation for Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital. “Thanks to the financial support we receive, CFOC will not only point them in the right direction but also help them turn their lives around.”

Photo by Daniel Johnson.