Longstanding partnership benefits Indianapolis area residents

Indianapolis, Feb. 28, 2017 – An impactful 40-year partnership between Eskenazi Health and Meals on Wheels of Central Indiana is being enhanced by a recent contribution that will significantly address the nutritional needs of homebound Hoosiers in the Indianapolis area.

Eskenazi Health recently presented Meals on Wheels of Central Indiana with an in-kind gift that will provide an estimated 75,000 meals for delivery to those in need in 2017. 

Beginning in 1976, Eskenazi Health joined with Meals on Wheels to deliver meals to Indianapolis-area residents. Eskenazi Health currently provides meals for seven weekday routes to the homebound and three bulk deliveries to local adult day centers serving more than 170 clients.

“Eskenazi Health is proud to have such a long-standing partnership with Meals on Wheels, which ensures those who are homebound and in need receive nutritious and medically-tailored meals,” said Dr. Lisa Harris, CEO of Eskenazi Health. 

Eskenazi Health and Meals on Wheels have worked together to initiate groundbreaking programs designed to fight against food insecurity and malnutrition in the senior and disabled homebound community. According to a study by The New England Journal of Medicine, food insecurity is one of the top 10 causes for costly hospital readmissions. With a food intervention at discharge, studies show this number can be reduced to as low as 8 percent. 

The problem is further exacerbated when seniors are discharged from the hospital and return home to find their pantry bare. Nationally, 20 percent of Medicare patients are readmitted within 30 days at a cost of $17 billion to our nation’s healthcare system. 

Leaders at Eskenazi Health and Meals on Wheels believe proper nutrition contributes to lowering the percentage of hospital readmissions for seniors. The two organizations are dedicated to the important role of identifying patients over 60 years old who are at risk of malnutrition after discharge. 

“Although our collaboration with Eskenazi Health has lasted for more than four decades, I feel we’re just beginning to find our stride in discovering what all we can do together to improve the lives of the people we serve,” said Barb Morris, executive director/CEO of Meals on Wheels of Central Indiana. “Eskenazi Health’s incredibly generous donation will help our cause tremendously, and we hope that our unique partnership can serve as a financial model for other organizations to follow.”

For more information about Meals on Wheels of Central Indiana, which provides 500+ weekday deliveries to homebound Indianapolis area residents in need, visit: http://www.mealsonwheelsindy.org/
  
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 CONTACT: Tom Surber
 Phone: 317.880.4793
 Cell: 317.402.9327
 Pager: 317.310.5972 
 Email: thomas.surber@eskenazihealth.edu