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MDCH Receives $1.5 Million Grant to Work with Future Health Professionals to Reduce Obesity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 19, 2012

LANSING - The Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) has received a three-year $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The grant will be used to improve health outcomes for overweight and obese patients in two medically underserved areas in Michigan: Detroit and Grand Rapids.

This grant will allow MDCH and partners to develop a team-based approach to care for obese children, students and adults at two university-affiliated nurse-managed primary care clinics: the Wayne State University Campus Health Center and the Grand Valley State University Family Health Center. MDCH's partners on this initiative include Wayne State University College of Nursing, Grand Valley State University's Office of the Vice Provost for Health and Kirkhof College of Nursing, the Michigan Area Health Education Center, and the Michigan Health Council.

"Grants such as these are critical to moving the needle on obesity for Michigan residents," said James K. Haveman, Director of the MDCH. "We have a real health crisis on our hands. A program that provides training opportunities for future health professionals and also clinical benefits for Michiganders is an invaluable resource for improving our future."

Nursing, social work and dietetics students and staff will collaborate around health promotion, care delivery and wellness measures for patients with obesity-related health conditions. The project will expand primary care services for overweight and obese patients by increasing clinical training opportunities for health professional students.

Michigan ranks fifth in the nation with an adult obesity rate of 31.7 percent and a combined rate of obese and overweight adult residents of about 67 percent. Governor Rick Snyder has recognized that obesity is a major public health problem facing Michigan. The three-year program will be evaluated and the outcomes of patients will be tracked in order to improve primary care and clinical training for health professionals statewide.

HRSA is the primary federal agency for enhancing access to health care for people who are uninsured, isolated or medically vulnerable.

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