DETROIT, Oct. 16, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Metro Healthcare Services will hold its Annual Board Meeting on Friday, October 19, 2007, at 12:00 p.m. at the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn. The meeting is open to the public. Metro Healthcare Services will award mini-grants totaling $100,000 to six local nonprofit organizations to promote health and wellness in Wayne County. Grantees include:
* Interfaith Health & Hope Coalition (IHHC), a group of more than
100 faith leaders in Metropolitan Detroit collaborating on
healthcare issues resulting from the economic plight, personal
stigma(s), social and emotional needs of the uninsured and
underinsured.
* Optometric Institute & Clinic of Detroit Inc., a one of a kind
medical eye care program providing vision saving services to
people who are uninsured and have acute or chronic medical
conditions with ocular ramifications.
* St. Patrick's Senior Center, the largest and oldest congregate
meal site, senior activity and wellness facility in Michigan,
feeds over 200 seniors daily and provides comprehensive health
and wellness activities to over 2,000 senior members annually.
* Western Wayne Family Health Centers, one of the newly funded
Federally Qualified Health Centers, aims primarily to reduce
dental care disparities in Inkster and to reduce the number of
carious lesions on primary and permanent teeth of young children
and those in grades 1 - 8.
* N.O.A.H. Project (Networking, Organizing and Advocacy for the
Homeless) provides physical and mental health care assessments,
referrals and dental care coordination to the homeless who lunch
at Central United Methodist Church twice a week. Malnutrition,
poor oral hygiene, tobacco and alcohol use wreak havoc on their
general and oral health.
* Mercy Primary Care Center provides primary care services
regardless of ability to pay, including physicals, blood tests,
preventative care and health education, management of acute and
chronic diseases, minor dental services, pelvic exams and pap
tests, enrollment into medical plans, social services and
treatment for depression, identified as a significant concern
for their patients.
The Mini-Grant Program is an annual initiative that provides funding to public and private organizations that develop and implement projects in the fields of disease prevention and management, workplace safety and health education and wellness.
"The grant program facilitates access to healthcare for vulnerable populations with limited or no access to healthcare prevention, screening and treatment due cultural, language, financial and transportation barriers," Executive Director Rose Khalifa said. "As a relatively new organization, we open our annual board meetings to the general public as a means to inform them about the services we provide."
MHS is a non-profit Detroit corporation founded in 2003 that aggregates and distributes healthcare funds from federal, state and local sources to organizations serving the vulnerable of Wayne County. MHS partners include health departments, hospitals and insurance plans. For more information, visit www.metrohcs.org or contact (313) 963-8383 or info@metrohcs.org.