Second Harvest Heartland recognizes CentraCare Health as 2017 Hunger Hero
CentraCare Health is a 2017 recipients of Second Harvest Heartland's annual Hunger Hero awards for making a compassionate and transformational impact on ending hunger.
CentraCare Health received the "Innovation" Hunger Hero Award for new program that addressed both hunger and health care needs. The CentraCare Family Health Center partnered with Second Harvest Heartland to pilot a new and innovative program called FOODRx, which tests the health and financial impacts of providing tailored food prescriptions to low-income patients with diabetes.
FOODRx provides food boxes that support healthy eating and the treatment to patients dealing with diabetes or heart disease. The boxes contain nutrient-rich foods that can be quickly prepared for delicious and healthy meals.
One participant, a 53-year-old woman, started using FOODRx in September with a blood glucose level of 11.4. She expresses appreciation for being part of the program and that she uses everything in the box. Since starting the FOODRx program, her blood glucose level has dropped by 2.4 points. Another participant, a 64-year-old man, saw a great improvement in his blood glucose level since starting the FOODRx program, dropping from 10.4 to 6.3.
"It is exciting to be a part of this program and seeing the progress of some of the enrolled patients," said Paul Schoenberg, Director of the CentraCare Family Health Center. "As a registered nurse, I am aware of the importance of good nutrition. Even so, I was surprised by some of the positive results."
CentraCare Health is one of six award-winning organizations that each represent a critical component to Second Harvest Heartland’s mission of ending hunger through community partnerships: financial, innovation, retail food rescue, volunteering, awareness and food distribution. Other 2017 winners include Bank of America, Coborn's, Inc., General Mills, Walmart and Taste of the NFL.
To read more about the Second Harvest Heartland Hunger Heroes Awards, visit http://www.2harvest.org/hungerheroes.