Respect for the Dignity of Each Person:
GMercyU’s Adult Health Center
Provides Affordable Health Care for
Community Members
In 2018, more than 27 million people
did not have health insurance at any
point during the year, according to the
United States Census Bureau. That’s
more than eight percent of our country’s
population. Additionally, 5.5% of
Pennsylvania’s population lives without
health insurance. How do these millions
of Americans take care of themselves
without access to affordable health care?
Thanks to health care organizations such
as Gwynedd Mercy University’s Adult
Health Center and the foundations that
support them, uninsured or underserved
people can get the care they need,
regardless of their financial resources.
The goal of the Center is to provide
affordable, high-quality health care to
uninsured/underinsured individuals who
otherwise would not be able to afford
it, while training tomorrow’s registered
nurses/nurse practitioners with hands-
on experience in the Mercy tradition of
service.
Opened in 1997, the Gwynedd Mercy
University Adult Health Center provides
primary and mental health care to
more than 1,500 patients each year
with significant health issues including
asthma, diabetes, arthritis, heart
disease, depression, bipolar disorder,
and COPD over the course of more than
4,000 patient visits. The Center also
treats patients and makes referrals
to specialized providers for patients
with endocrine, orthopedic, pulmonary
and cardiac health issues. In addition,
the Center staff engages patients in
discussions about their health and
provides specific education related to
their health issues during individual
patient visits.
“Many patients without health
insurance delay medical care due to
concerns about financial cost until
small problems become major health
concerns,” says Dr. Denise Vanacore,
Director of Primary Health Care
Services for the Adult Health Center
and Graduate Program Director for the
Frances M. Maguire School of Nursing
and Health Professions. “At the Adult
Health Center, we care for all types of
health problems by promoting effective
delivery of holistic health services based
on an empowerment model through
collaborative and interdisciplinary
care.”
The Adult Health Center works hard to
accommodate any patient, especially
those who otherwise would not be able
to afford it. Most of the individuals
and families who are served have
multiple health issues that have been
undiagnosed. The facility provides
healthcare to thousands of residents
per year, 85% of whom have little
or no insurance coverage. With an
expanding patient base, grant funding
from charitable organizations is more
important than ever.
Affordable health care facilities like
GMercyU’s Adult Health Center are able
to offer their services to surrounding
communities largely in part to the
assistance received from grants. Without
the continued support from these
organizations and foundations, funding
the facility’s daily operations and
purchasing the needed supplies would be
nearly impossible. In 2019, the Gwynedd
Mercy University Adult Health Center is
grateful to have received the following
grants to support their efforts to improve
our community’s health and well-being:
∎ ∎ The Genuardi Family Foundation
awarded the Gwynedd Mercy
University Adult Health Center
a $10,000 grant to promote
the effective delivery of holistic
health services to meet the acute
and chronic healthcare needs of
patients in Montgomery County.
The Foundation strives to fund
organizations who invest in
sustainable change efforts to
break the cycles of poverty and
vulnerability, and build toward
a better future for all people.
Since 2006, the Genuardi Family
Foundation has contributed to
the Adult Health Center annually,
amounting to a total of $166,000.
∎ ∎ The Independence Blue Cross
Foundation awarded the University
a Blue Safety Net grant totaling
$50,000 to support Gwynedd Mercy
University’s Adult Health Center.
The Blue Safety Net grant program
is awarded to non-profit, privately
funded community health centers
that provide free or affordable care
to local communities. The IBX
Foundation has been supporting the
Adult Health Center since 2012 and
has contributed a total of $485,000
in grants.
∎ ∎ The VNA Foundation of Greater
North Penn awarded the Gwynedd
Mercy University Adult Health
Center its first $15,300 grant
for general operating services
in the spring of 2018. The VNA
Foundation supports program,
operations, or capacity-building
projects in the North Penn region of
Montgomery County which seek to
more effectively and efficiently fulfill
their mission to the community. The
VNA Foundation has given a total of
$30,300 to the Adult Health Center
since its first contribution in 2018.
Through the generous contributions
from charitable organizations and
the dedicated nurses and staff who
administer vital care, the Gwynedd
Mercy University Adult Health Center
can continue making a difference in the
lives of our most vulnerable community
members and treat them with the care
and dignity they deserve.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
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