Children’s Mercy Hospital Receives $60,253 Grant from the Health Forward Foundation

Children’s Mercy Hospital recently received a grant for $60,253 from the Health Forward Foundation to achieve physical and mental well-being for families, caregivers, and children with medical complexity by providing an eight-week, mindfulness-based stress reduction group for parents.

Funding will support staff costs, facility costs (rental space), and program supplies. The program will serve 12 children (and 12-24 parents/caregivers), targeting children age 4-6 demonstrating externalizing behaviors from under-resourced (e.g. low-income, under-insured, or uninsured) households, that are transitioning to kindergarten in fall 2020 and whose families face barriers to accessing treatment options.

Children with behavior problems often do not receive treatment. Too many parents don’t know where to begin or may not even be aware that their child’s behavior is a problem. Without knowledge and skills for how to reinforce appropriate behaviors, frustrated and overwhelmed parents may turn to harsh parenting, further exacerbating their child’s behaviors and poor outcomes at school and home. During the free eight-week program, children receive approximately 280 hours of intervention, the equivalent of six years of traditional weekly individual outpatient psychotherapy services. Parents/Caregivers receive tools at weekly parent trainings to extend the gains from the services to the child’s natural environment, helping them change unacceptable behavior at home, reduce non-compliant and disruptive behaviors, and improve relationships with parents and siblings.

Children’s Mercy was founded in 1897 by two sisters committed to treating Kansas City’s sick, poor, and abandoned children. In 1904, they opened a 5-bed “Mercy Hospital” which grew over time to become our region’s only pediatric medical center. Today, Children’s Mercy is a nonprofit pediatric medical system with a 313-bed hospital in KCMO, a 54-bed hospital in Overland Park, Kansas, and 11 outpatient clinics throughout Missouri and Kansas. At these locations, we integrate clinical care, research, and medical education to treat over 250,000 patients annually ages birth to 21 years. Our mission is to improve the health and well-being of children by providing comprehensive, family-centered health care and committing to the highest level of clinical and psycho-social care, and to research, academic and service excellence.  In keeping with our charitable roots, Children’s Mercy serves as a vital safety net for children and families in poverty. More than half of patients served receive Medicaid or have no insurance. Children’s Mercy remains committed to serving all children who need us, regardless of family income. In 2018, we provided nearly $180 million in uncompensated care and community benefit for children throughout our region.



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