Health & Hope is a newsletter designed to educate and inspire Western Montanans on life-saving procedures, community events and services to keep you and your family healthy.
Issue link: https://blog.providence.org/i/1480058
When Peter and Kabuo arrived in Alaska as refugees from Uganda five years ago, neither spoke English. They knew nothing of the region, with its shockingly different climate from Africa. "But we were desperate to move somewhere safe," said Kabuo from their home in Anchorage, through a Swahili‑speaking translator. Their family, which includes five children, is receiving support and finding hope through their partnership with a community health worker or CHW. Providence supports this program, enabling community health workers to build trust within vulnerable communities and create bridges to critical services. The CHWs use COMMUNITY BENEFIT SNAPSHOT We invest in Alaska's health " I am so happy I have work, the house payment is fair, and the kids are enjoying school," Peter said. "The kids are learning the language and we are safe now. " Total benefit to our communities in 2021 $75 MILLION Caring for our communities has never been more important. To achieve our vision of health for a better world, we worked closely with our community partners to ensure we addressed the communities' most pressing needs. Community health workers help Ugandan family adjust to Alaska their education, training, community partnerships, lived experience and Providence Alaska resources to address access issues. These are caused by differences in language and culture, past experiences, and challenges with transportation, lack of insurance and health literacy. Zabeeba Mohammed, one of the CHWs, came to Alaska from Lebanon in 2008 and remembers the feelings she experienced at that time. "It was difficult," said Zabeeba. "There was the language barrier, the weather, the rules and the different culture. It was very difficult to find transportation, and doctor experiences were hard." Today, Zabeeba uses her experience to help others. At Peter and Kabuo's home, she works with Peter to get his family signed up for the public assistance for which they qualify. After nearly five years in Alaska, Peter and Kabuo say they are adjusting. Having support from Zabeeba and the other CHWs in the Providence family is comforting. Peter and Kabuo's family, with Zabeeba Mohammed (left) Providence Alaska Medical Center is a Level II Trauma Center, Pediatric Level II Trauma Center, and Alaska's only Level III Newborn Intensive Care Unit 16.5 football fields amount of square footage at Providence Alaska Medical Center Providence Alaska Medical Center recognized as Best Hospital in Alaska for 2021-22 by U.S. News & World Report alaska.providence.org Providence has a long history of serving Alaskans, beginning when the Sisters of Providence brought health care to Nome in 1902 during the Gold Rush. Today, Providence Alaska continues that Mission of compassionate care with ministries in six communities — Anchorage, Eagle River, Kodiak Island, Valdez, Seward, and the Mat-Su Valley — and service to many more via telehealth. In partnership with providers throughout the state, we provide a lifetime of care for Alaskans of all ages. 2,840 Providence Valdez patients 29,037 Behavioral Health appointments 9,517 Providence Kodiak Island patients 56,552 Primary Care patients $10.6M Providence Alaska Foundation philanthropic donations distributed back to programs A SNAPSHOT OF PROVIDENCE ALASKA IN 2021 3,180 Providence Seward patients MORE THAN 5,000 caregivers MORE THAN 120,000 total patients 3rd Providence is the third largest not-for-profit health care system in the U.S. LEARN MORE Sisters of Providence visiting Portage Glacier in 1964 That's nearly six babies a day! 2,140 babies delivered 120 years Providence Alaska has served the state