Allegheny Health Network Receives $2 Million in Grant Funding from Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation

Funding will support the expansion of various AHN programs aimed at improving healthy equity across Western Pennsylvania 

PITTSBURGH – Allegheny Health Network (AHN) is pleased to announce that it has received generous grant funding from the Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation. Totaling approximately $2 million, the funding will support the expansion of four unique programs within AHN’s Center for Inclusion Health which address some of the most pressing health and wellness issues facing Western Pennsylvanians today, including opioid addiction, food insecurity, chronic disease management and homelessness.

“At AHN, we are deeply committed to improving the health and wellbeing of the communities that we are so privileged to serve every day,” said Allie Quick, senior vice president and chief philanthropy officer, AHN. “Doing so is only achievable with the support of like-minded partners such as the Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation. We are extremely grateful for the Foundation’s significant support which will enable continued growth of key programs that positively impact community health outcomes across our region.”

A portion of the funding will support the AHN Perinatal Hope Program – a comprehensive care model that supports expectant and postpartum mothers with opioid use disorders by providing medication-assisted treatment, drug and alcohol counseling, health and wellness education, social support services and connection to community as part of their obstetrics care.

This is the second charitable gift from the Foundation in support of the Perinatal Hope Program which launched in 2016. The program currently operates at AHN Jefferson, AHN Forbes and AHN West Penn hospitals in the Pittsburgh region, AHN Northern Regional OB/GYN practice in Cranberry Twp., Pa., and AHN Saint Vincent Hospital in Erie, Pa.

The grant funding will also support the continued expansion of the AHN Healthy Food Center. A first-of-its-kind for the Greater Pittsburgh region, the Healthy Food Center’s five locations across the AHN footprint provide free, nutritious foods and nutrition counseling to patients who are food insecure and often struggle to properly manage health conditions. To date, more than 220,000 meals have been supplied by the Healthy Food Center to more than 20,000 patients and their families.

The AHN Chronic Care Specialty Team (CCST) within the AHN Medicine Institute will also receive a portion of the funding. For those managing symptoms related to chronic conditions such as congestive heart failure, COPD, chronic kidney disease and diabetes, the multi-disciplinary CCST takes a team-based approach to helping patients achieve better symptom control and lower their risk of complications.

Finally, funding was awarded to the Humane Health Coalition which is offered in partnership between the AHN Center for Inclusion Health and Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh. The coalition connects individuals experiencing homelessness with medical and social services, and provides free veterinary services for their pets.

The Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation was formed in 2020 under the will of Jennie K. Scaife, who is the granddaughter of banker and industrialist Richard B. Mellon, grandniece of Andrew W. Mellon and inheritor of a portion of the family’s fortune in banking, oil and metals.

The Foundation supports programs that strengthen families, address issues surrounding the health and welfare of women and children, promote animal welfare and demonstrate the beneficial interaction between humans and animals.

“We are proud to support an organization like Allegheny Health Network which has a mission so closely aligned with our own,” said David Zywiec, president, Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation. “Helping to build healthier communities and creating possibilities for people to lead healthier lives is an essential part of the focus for the Jennie K. Scaife Charitable Foundation and builds on our longstanding legacy of service.”

To learn more, visit www.jkscharitablefoundation.org.

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