Jewish Healthcare Foundation Approves over $1.7M in Grants, Including Teen Mental Health Initiatives, Programming to Address Women's Health Inequities as They Age, & Grassroots Efforts to Support the National Patient Safety Board

PITTSBURGH, PA – The Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) approved over $1,700,000 in grants, including funds for supporting teen mental health initiatives, addressing women's health inequities as they age, activating Families USA's Health Action Network to establish the National Patient Safety Board, supporting Jewish students facing rising antisemitism, and continuing support for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Supporting JHF's Teen Mental Health Initiative

JHF approved $250,000 to support the JHF teen mental health team's work in the PA Youth Advocacy Network and the Teen Mental Health Collaborative through 2024, to support staffing and program costs. An additional $50,000 has been granted to replenish the emergency grant fund for teen mental health support. Created in 2018 after the Tree of Life tragedy, and deployed during the pandemic to address the severe mental health repercussions, the $50,000 will be used to support community-based organizations who are part of the Teen Mental Health Collaborative through grant opportunities.

Women As They Age: Addressing the Next Inequity Frontier

JHF approved a $300,000 grant over the next two years for building on its Health Equity for Aging Women initiative that was initiated at the end of 2022 and led to a new focus for WHAMglobal in 2023. The new funding will drive an exchange among thought leaders to uncover fresh insights, promising strategies, and policy opportunities. To accomplish this, JHF is building a network of experts, advocates, and activists around the world to help develop recommendations and an action plan.

As part of this work, the Foundation along with other health and aging funders is spearheading an international Salzberg Global Seminar to be held in January 2024 in the San Diego area. The program will bring together 40 participants from across the globe for a two-and-a-half-day residential program to inform the initiative, serve as a call to action, and raise awareness.

Activating Families USA's Health Action Network to Establish the NPSB

JHF approved a $50,000 grant for Families USA to activate its Health Action Network around patient safety and the National Patient Safety Board (NPSB) by holding a webinar for consumer and patient advocacy groups; posting patient safety and NPSB materials on their website as part of their healthcare value platform; asking advocacy groups to join the NPSB Coalition and sign onto letters supporting the NPSB bill; pitching patient safety stories to earned media; and supporting local consumer advocacy groups in sending letters to the legislators' offices about the NPSB bill in targets states.

Supporting Jewish Students Facing Rising Antisemitism

JHF approved emergency funding to support the mental health needs of Jewish students facing rising antisemitism. The Board approved $100,000 to Hillel International, $25,000 to Hillel Jewish University Center, and $5,000 each to Chabad on Campus at University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University.

In the wake of the Hamas attacks on Israel and the rising tensions in Israel and on college campuses worldwide, these grants will provide peer supports, safe havens, and expanded outreach to students.

Health Needs of the Jewish Community

JHF approved to maintain its support of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh at the level of $900,000 for 2024, representing 60 percent of the $1.5 million in annual operating funds distributed to agencies and programs through the Federation's allocations process for the current year to support human service needs in Pittsburgh.

United Way of Southern Pennsylvania

JHF approved to maintain its support of the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania at $68,000. The grant is allocated to the Impact Fund which supports the core program of the United Way's partner agencies, as well as new initiatives that address the critical community needs of children, families, employment, health, housing, neighborhoods, and seniors, helping them to meet basic needs, move toward financial stability, and empower young learners for success in school and life.

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Available for Interviews: Karen Wolk Feinstein, PhD, President and CEO, Jewish Healthcare Foundation

About the Jewish Healthcare Foundation
The Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) and its three operating arms — the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative (PRHI), Health Careers Futures (HCF), and the Women's Health Activist Movement Global (WHAMglobal) — offer a unique brand of activist philanthropy to advance healthcare innovation, advocacy, collaboration, and education in the interest of better population health. For more information, visit jhf.org.