Dexter Community Regional Healthcare Foundation

Programs: Mother-to-mother - this program is an incentive based mentoring program for pregnant and parenting young women. Training, education, and equipment are provided that enable young mothers to become better parents and reduce the occurrences of child abuse and neglect. Two scheduled group meetings each month provide time and information for young mothers and their children to interact with staff and other young families. Being an incentive based program, mentees go over an incentive form once a month with their mentor and are awarded baby bucks for developing positive parenting skills and responsibilities. They in turn may spend their baby bucks in the baby boutique which is stocked with clothing, diapers, wipes, educational toys, safety equipment, and infant supplies. Young mothers, fathers, and children very much enjoy coming by the office to visit and play in the resource center. During these meetings the children enjoy the playroom and the parents get to interact with staff in a relaxing, stress free atmosphere. Mother-to-mother is a 4 phase program. Phase i is when a young woman enters the program during her pregnancy. She enters phase ii when the child is born. When the child reaches its first birthday the mother then decides if she wants to enter phase iii of the program. If she chooses to enter phase iii she must either continue her education or obtain employment. Mother-to-mother is all about education and young mothers creating safe and stable homes for their families. Emphasis is given to promoting positive training and skills that enable the young mother to develop a financially secure future for her and her family. If they do not have a high school diploma they are required to enter our hse (ged) program. The hse (ged) program is open not only to mothers but also fathers. If they want to begin or continue with college or technical school classes a staff person is available to provide them with assistance to further their education or technical skills. Assistance is provided to those that are looking for employment by helping with job searches, resumes, appropriate clothing for interviews, and tips on good interview presentations. Phase iv, the final component in the mother to mother program, prepares participants for exit from the program, offers peer monitoring and/or volunteering opportunities. Participants will remain in phase iv for no longer than one year. During 2017 a total of 175 young parents and children participated in the mother-to-mother program. The mother to mother program is primarily funded by grants and donor contributions.

prescription drug assistance program - this program helps the uninsured and low-income to secure prescription medications available through various pharmaceutical company indigent programs. During 2017 the volunteers and staff assisted individuals to secure 2,177 prescription medications, at a total monetary value of 3,916,825.

healthcare related scholarships - this program provides scholarships to encourage local residents to pursue healthcare related careers. Three dexter community regional healthcare scholarships totaling 7,500 were awarded in 2017 to graduating seniors and to current college students who met the 3. 25 gpa requirement for scholarship renewal. All of these students must be a resident of stoddard county and pursue training in a healthcare related field. These scholarships are offered in an attempt to increase the number of healthcare providers in the county. High school seniors may apply for this 10,000 scholarship if they have a minimum act score of 25 and they are attending a stoddard county school or are home schooled in stoddard county. Each applicant must provide a short biography and answer an essay question regarding their career goals. Three independent judges from outside stoddard county review the applications and the essay. These judges do not know the names of the applicants. The scholarship is awarded to the applicant with the highest combined numerical score. The high school senior is awarded the scholarship at the annual meeting of the regional healthcare foundation. In 2017 5,375 was awarded to two students through our nontraditional scholarship program. Applicants must be 25 years of age or older and have their education interrupted for 5 years or more. The applicant must be entering the healthcare field and be a resident of stoddard county or a graduate from a stoddard county high school.

a hse (ged) program is offered to participants of mother-to-mother and to all other parenting young men and women under the age of thirty. The organization awards grants to other non-profit organizations that further its healthcare mission. During the year, grants were awarded to a local exempt organization to assist in physician recruitment for the local community hospital. Other awards were given to local charities to assist with cancer treatments, child abuse prevention and mental health services. The organization founded the stoddard county health coalition to address health concerns established by a county needs assessment prepared by sehealth and st. Francis hospitals. Members of this coalition include dexter chamber of commerce, dr. Bobby jibben, southeast health of stoddard county, stoddard county health center, parents as teachers, southeast missouri behavioral health, cypress point nursing center, dexter public schools, and bloomfield public schools. Community efforts to educate the public regarding the dangers of smoking in public places were the primary activities. The stoddard county health coalition promoted smoke free issues at various events and continued a partnership with a local high school advocacy group known as smokebusters.