| FLORENCE — Tapestry Health has received a one-year planning grant from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation to address the disproportionately high rate of teen births among Latinas in Hampden County. The grant, dubbed Closing the Gap on Health Care Disparities, awarded $68,000 in support of Tapestry Health’s plan to initiate a local intervention, conducting community research in an effort to reduce these health care disparities.Nearly one in seven Latina females in Hampden County aged 15 to 19 gave birth in 2006, for a total of 472 births. This number is far greater than the combined total number of births to African-American (124) and white (201) teens in Hampden County that year. The birth rate among Hampden County’s Latina teens also easily eclipsed the rate among all Latina teens in Massachusetts that year (84.6 per 1,000).
“Teen parenthood can limit educational and career opportunities for teens, as well as risk complications during pregnancy and delivery,” said Suzanne Smith, Tapestry Health’s Director of Health Services. “As a trusted, community-based provider of reproductive health care, Tapestry Health is uniquely placed to delve deeper in to the causes and questions around this local trend.”
An innovative component of the grant is the creation of a statewide ‘learning community’ to build relationships, share best practices, and create solutions among those who work in reducing health care disparities in the state. Tapestry health will participate in that initiative alongside the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation as a full partner and member. Tapestry Health will also partner with the Youth Empowerment Adolescent Health Network, a coalition of 20 community agencies that work collaboratively on community research, advocacy, and education in an effort to improve the reproductive health of youth in Hampden County.
“The existence of health care disparities, particularly those based on race and ethnicity, is well-known,” said Jarrett Barrios, president of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation. “The foundation believes these inequalities in care can be reduced when communities impacted by disparities are active in coming up with solutions.” |
