Community Health

We build partnerships with local organizations to advance health equity in New York City

Roderick Wong, MD

Chairman

One of the hallmarks of our community partnerships is that we go beyond just financial support. Our team truly engages with communities and serves alongside our partners.

Sarah Garwood

Director, Community Engagement

Locally-led development is critical for lasting impact in the community. One thing I love about our work at RTW Foundation is that we really focus our projects on community-led initiatives and shift the power to local leaders. Our partners know the challenges their communities are facing the best, making them best positioned to respond well.

Terrie Paladino

Director & Board Member, Saving Mothers

Working with the RTW team has been a profoundly positive and rewarding experience. RTW has been a true partner, consistently demonstrating ongoing support of our work through open communications, program assessments, collaborations with other RTW partners, and accessibility which helps elevate our programming and strengthen the impact we have on the women we serve.

Vianey Romero-Mendez

Director of Programs at Mixteca

Throughout our engagement with RTW Foundation, one of the most valuable aspects has been the Foundation’s trust in community-based organizations like Mixteca and its understanding of the realities faced by immigrant communities. RTW’s flexible and responsive approach has allowed us to adapt programming to the evolving needs of our community while continuing to center culturally responsive health education.

Hewett Chiu

President & CEO at RaisingHealth Partners

RaisingHealth is thrilled to receive RTW Foundation’s support sustaining our free, culturally tailored mental health services for uninsured immigrants. This support comes at a crucial moment, when our immigrant communities are facing immense harms, stressors, and barriers to care.

135,000+

New Yorkers provided with improved health access through community-based health services, low/no-cost health screenings & resources, appointment transportation, appointment incentives, and other health equity initiatives

97,932

New Yorkers educated on key public health issues including preventative care, coverage options, vaccines, and improved health literacy

2,438

people across underserved communities provided with culturally responsive mental health support, including 908 frontline healthcare workers

868

healthcare workers trained or hired to respond to underserved communities in NYC

NYC community partners supported and strengthened

13,043

New Yorkers with improved access through location-based services, transportation support, appointment incentives, care navigation and translation services

5,021

New Yorkers enrolled in free or low-cost health care benefits (Medicaid, Medicare, NYC Care, etc.)

11,700+

people vaccinated against COVID-19 through support for mobile vaccine services, nurses, community health workers, registration support, and appointment translation

Health Equity Grants

At RTW Foundation, we believe that building strong, lasting relationships with our Grant Partners is the cornerstone of meaningful change.

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Value Beyond Funding

We partner with grantees to co-create programs and community events, including community health fairs, that bring communities together, expand access to support, and amplify our collective impact.

Days of Action

RTW Foundation and our community health partners are committed to advancing health equity by addressing key social determinants of health in NYC and beyond. One key way we achieve this is through our Days of Action.

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Location

Montefiore's CICERO program provides confidential HIV/AIDS testing, treatment, and counseling in addition to primary care services. The African International Collaborative Center provides health resources to strengthen African immigrant communities.

AIRnyc works to improve health access, referral support, and care navigation.

RaisingHealth Partners, Mexican Coalition, and Mixteca provide community-based health services including screenings, care navigation, preventive care, and social services for immigrant communities in Brooklyn.

ACT Care Foundation delivers specialized health, nutritional, and community support services to underinsured New Yorkers.

Harlem United and New York Cares expand access to healthcare, mental health, and housing services, with Harlem United assisting people with harm reduction. Saving Mothers empowers mothers with self-advocacy resources, health equipment and health education to their providers. Karen's Club provides personalized and culturally responsive consulting to cancer patients of color.

Exodus Transitional Community and East Harlem Health Outreach Partnership (EHHOP) reduce barriers to free care by providing transportation to appointments, mental health services, and addressing social needs. Mount Sinai supports research for the care of patients with PACS. Violence Intervention Program helps Latinx survivors of domestic violence, and trains counselor advocates.

Send Chinatown Love, Think!Chinatown, and Welcome to Chinatown, support small businesses, food security, and social services for families in Chinatown. Hamilton-Madison House provides behavioral health services, youth education, and family support.

Karen's Club provides personalized and culturally responsive consulting to cancer patients of color.

The NYU Langone Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, provides long-awaited diagnoses for medically complex patients who have gone years without answers after standard clinical evaluations.

Razom provides a wide range of medical supplies to first responders and hospitals in Ukraine.

Grameen Promotoras, a Grameen America community health program, supports underserved entrepreneurs across New York City with health education, screenings, and personalized referrals and care navigation.

The Floating Hospital provides comprehensive affordable medical care to patients, offering free transportation from shelters and safe houses across the five boroughs.

Community Health Action of Staten Island trains healthcare providers in health literacy and reduces barriers to health care.

Community Health Partners

Violence Intervention Program

Violence Intervention Program developed a training manual, trained 18 VIP Staff in six new healing modalities, and piloted group therapy sessions with 20 survivors. They also trained counselor advocates, reaching approximately 1,200 survivors annually.

NYU Langone Health

The NYU Langone Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, provides long-awaited diagnoses for medically complex patients who have gone years without answers after standard clinical evaluations. The team will enroll 25 families in the program this year, providing state-of-the-art genetic and genomic testing for rare disease patients regardless of socioeconomic status. With more detailed diagnostics, the NYU team aims to provide families with a better understanding of their child’s condition and can advise on next steps for treatment or care.

Weill Cornell Medicine

Weill Cornell Medicine conducted a cross-sectional time series analysis of pediatric mental health emergencies across the first three waves of the pandemic. Their research demonstrated increased proportions of pediatric mental health emergency department visits, especially during Wave 2, with the magnitude of the increase being dependent on specific mental health diagnoses and sociodemographic factors. Increases in mental health emergencies were associated with COVID-19 case prevalence, but not with the societal restrictions placed as a result of the pandemic. Findings were presented at two national meetings and will be published in peer-reviewed journals.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Mount Sinai supported their research on the pathophysiology of PACS and have published their findings identifying objective blood biomarkers associated with PACs/Long-COVID and making recommendations for effective intervention protocols in the care of patients with PACS.

Rutgers