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A program that provides financial assistance to low-income families so they can visit with their newborn babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and an educator who helps engage community stakeholders in training graduate health students and clinicians about strategies to deliver effective care and reduce HIV disparities among minority populations are among seven recipients of the Florida Blue Foundation’s annual Sapphire Awards.
The two Miami-Dade winners will share $100,000 that will allow them to continue to focus on innovative ideas and programs to improve health equity in their communities.
The Florida Blue Foundation announced the awardees at its annual Sapphire Awards ceremony on May 4 in Orlando. The Florida Blue Foundation is the philanthropic affiliate of Florida Blue, the state’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan. Each of the programs, organizations and individuals is making a meaningful impact in their communities related to advancements in health equity.
“As a mission-driven company focused on helping people and communities achieve better health, we believe everyone deserves to have an equal opportunity to achieve their full health potential,” said Susan Towler, executive director of the Florida Blue Foundation. “By recognizing and rewarding excellence and innovation in those addressing the big issues in health equity, and collaborating with others in our state, we can advance solutions and remove barriers that will help improve health care access and strengthen the communities we serve.”
The awardees were selected through a robust external review process for their exemplary leadership, innovative ideas and excellence. They all have a track record of success in decreasing health disparities and improving health equity, which directly contributes to positive health outcomes.
Sonjia Kenya, EdD, MS, MA is an associate professor of general medicine and the director of community health programs at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Driven by her belief that achieving health equity requires ongoing, meaningful input from populations suffering the greatest health problems, Dr. Kenya partners with community members to develop culturally acceptable health care delivery models.
She leverages her role as an educator to engage community stakeholders in training graduate health students and clinicians about strategies to deliver effective care and reduce HIV disparities among minority populations. Kenya received a second-place award and the $50,000 will be directed to the community health programs at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
“We recruit people from within the community who are trusted and train them to become community health workers. These community leaders are a wealth of knowledge, and they want to help their neighborhood. This is how we make inroads that lead to improved health,” said Kenya, director of Community Health at the Weiss Center for Health Equity at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at UHealth – University of Miami Health System – and associate professor of medicine and public health at the Miller School.
“This award acknowledges the power of community partnerships to reduce health disparities. It is amazing that our collaborative work to end HIV is being recognized,” she added.
ICU baby’s Transportation Assistance Program supports families with a baby in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The program offers a financial stipend to offset transportation costs for low-income families whose visits with their baby in the NICU are restricted because of financial hardship. ICU baby’s team of NICU parent mentors witness firsthand the additional financial strain that having a baby in the NICU places on a family, regardless of their finances. This program helps ensure parents can be with their newborn when they need them most. This program was honored with a second-place award and $50,000.
“The primary goal of this program is actually quite simple; we unite parents with their baby in the hospital. What we know is that the opportunity for a parent to participate in their baby’s in-hospital care leads to better physiological and developmental outcomes. Our Transportation Assistance Program removes one financial barrier to parents being bedside and, in doing so, allows for parents and their baby to thrive together,” said Elizabeth Simonton, co-founder/CEO of ICU baby.
“With this award, ICU baby will continue to strengthen its comprehensive support programming to help families through the uncertain NICU journey,” she added.
Since 2005, the foundation has presented 130 Sapphire Awards to individuals, programs and organizations in community health, totaling more than $6.3 million.
The Sapphire Awards were presented during the Florida Blue Foundation’s annual two-day Community Health Symposium. This year’s event focused on health equity and attracted more than 600 people from the healthcare, government, higher education and nonprofit sectors.
The event featured national and statewide speakers, panel discussions and networking opportunities focused on identifying solutions to reduce health disparities, improve affordability and increase access to high-quality care.
