Foundation Pledges 100% Donation Match to Support Health Professions Scholarships
West Palm Beach, Fla. October 15, 2024 – Palm Health Foundation and its donors are making a significant impact by investing in both the future healthcare workforce and the aspirations of students in South Florida. Thanks to an outpouring of donor support, the foundation recently awarded $530,000 in needs-based scholarships to 92 nursing and behavioral health students at local universities pursuing degrees to fill significant gaps in access to care across Palm Beach County.
To support the growth of the behavioral health workforce, the foundation will match 100% of donations between September 1 and October 31, 2024 to The Scholarship Fund for Mental Health Professions at Palm Health Foundation. The foundation will launch a second 100% donation match for nursing scholarships on Giving Tuesday, December 3, 2024.
“Our scholarship funds are addressing significant shortages in the nursing and behavioral health care workforce in our county and are supporting scholars who bring a great deal of lived experience caring for individuals and families to their professions,” said Patrick McNamara, president and CEO of Palm Health Foundation. “Our scholars’ ability to bridge languages and cultures is critical to providing quality care for our diverse South Florida communities, making our entire region healthier and stronger.”
Beatriz Moreno is one of those scholars, and a trailblazer in humanizing care for Hispanic families. Thanks to Palm Health Foundation donors, Moreno overcame the financial burden to pursue a Master of Education in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.
“In the Hispanic and Latin community, there are distinct differences between populations from South and Central American countries, and even more so from Spain,” Moreno said. “Understanding these differences from personal experience and being exposed to preliminary research methods from my undergraduate education, has inspired me to be at the forefront of this research during my graduate education and onward.”
Studies show that developing culturally responsive environments and providing care with a greater awareness and sensitivity to a patient’s unique and inherent characteristics, improve health outcomes, patient satisfaction, and the overall quality of care.
“The Palm Health Foundation scholarship is helping me to inspire my younger siblings and other first-generation Hispanic students,” Moreno said. “I hope to remind them that their dreams and goals are attainable, without the fear of being weighed down by student loans.”
To make a gift or create a donor advised fund to support health professions scholars, please contact Carrie Browne, Director of Stewardship and Strategic Partnerships, (561) 837-2281, carrieb@phfpbc.org.
About Palm Health Foundation Scholarships
Palm Health Foundation has granted more than $4 million in nursing and behavioral health professions scholarships for advanced education since its founding in 2001. The foundation partners with the George Snow Scholarship Fund to administer scholarships with funding provided through Pam Health Foundation’s Nursing Advancement Fund, and donor advised funds, including The Debra Coffman Howe Nursing Scholarship Fund for those seeking to work in bedside care, The Alonso Family Neighborhood Healthcare Fund, The Andrew P. Barowsky Scholarship Fund, The Charles Norton Adams Nursing Endowment Scholarship Fund, Diamond Hill Capital Management, The Helen K. Persson Nursing Education Fund, The Joseph Dolce Surgical Nursing Scholarship Fund, The Peter & Elinka Ordway Nursing Scholarship Fund, The Madeline and Delaney Nursing Scholarship Fund, and The Sutton Kailey Nursing Advancement Fund.
The foundation’s behavioral health professions scholarship funding is provided by the Southeast Florida Behavioral Health Network, which has granted more than $600,000 for behavioral health scholarships since 2023, The Scholarship Fund for Mental Health Professions at Palm Health Foundation, and donor advised funds, including The Frances Fisher Scholarship Fund, The Koehn Family Fund, and The Mike McNamara Scholarship Fund. Scholarship funding continues to elevate Palm Health Foundation’s leadership in advancing brain health and building educational pathways for the next generation of healthcare workers.
Palm Health Foundation is recognized by nursing leaders and educators for its dedication to growing and strengthening the nursing workforce in Palm Beach County since its inception in 2001. In addition to nursing scholarships, the foundation has invested more than $10 million in initiatives to build a highly skilled nursing workforce that provides care across all settings and supports optimal health in the community including care transitions and care coordination.
In the area of behavioral health, the foundation’s Brain Health Innovation Fund is dedicated to strengthening the local bonds between scientific research, community supports, and quality care to transform brain health in Palm Beach County. The Brain Coast is sparking shared vision, determination, science, education, collaboration, and investment to transform our region and change the world.
About Palm Health Foundation
Palm Health Foundation is Palm Beach County’s community foundation for health. With the support of donors and a focus on results, the foundation builds strong community partnerships, respects diverse opinions, advocates for its most vulnerable neighbors, and inspires innovative solutions to lead change for better health now and for generations to come. The foundation supports health equity for Palm Beach County residents of all backgrounds, heritage, education, incomes, and states of well-being. Palm Health Foundation has invested more than $93 million in Palm Beach County health since 2001. For more information about Palm Health Foundation, visit palmhealthfoundation.org or call (561) 833-6333.