September 9, 2019 3:35 a.m.
Mercy Foundation has been awarded a $90,000 plus 1-year planning grant from the CHI Mission and Ministry fund for the youth diabetes program, Beyond the Diagnosis-T1D.
CHI is the parent organization of CHI Mercy Health Mercy Medical Center.
Kathleen Nickel from Mercy said a local youth diabetes initiative was started in 2018 in response to outreach from Douglas County ESD Nurses. Nickel said the nurses were struggling to find resources to help youth and their families manage Type 1 Diabetes. Initially 30 public school children had been identified with T1D. Since that time the number has climbed to 45 and it is unclear how many more children with T1D are in the community and have just been identified.
3 school nurses are working in conjunction with the Healthy Kids Outreach Program Nurses for all the schools within Douglas County and are focusing their responsibilities on medically fragile children, including those needing to inject insulin.
Mercy Foundation President Lisa Platt said the planning grant aligns with their investment in prevention to improve overall health and wellness. She said the funding for the T1D program will allow the foundation to expand their collaborations that are already in place through programs like the Healthy Kids Outreach Program and the Rural Dental Health Initiative.
The goal is to offer youth, parents and schools, education and support to successfully manage the diagnosis while exploring additional wrap around services.
For more information about the grant, call Mercy Foundation at 677-4818.