Mission

Healthy people are more productive and require fewer community-based services. Adults are more productive at work, children are more prepared to learn, and older adults and persons with disabilities receiving supportive services can benefit from an improved quality of life.

The Issues

100,000 people in Greenville County are medically underserved, meaning that they are either uninsured, have delayed care because of cost or have access barriers to receiving health care that they need.
58,403 people in Greenville County have no health insurance at all.
75,000 people in Greenville County have not seen a dentist in the last year – mostly because of cost.
Seniors and persons with disabilities are a growing population needing many services to remain self- sufficient, contributing members of our community. Approximately 46,730 (12%) persons over the age of 65 are living in Greenville County. This number is expected to double in the next 20 years. Additionally, 1 in 5 (19%) residents of Greenville County are living with a least one type of disability.
More and more of our residents are dealing with stress, anxiety and depression and many are turning to the use of alcohol and other drugs to cope.

Health-Related Research
and Web Links

"Bridging the Health Care Gap" provides an excellent summary of the local research that was conducted regarding health care, more detailed research information is also available.

Hands on Health South Carolina is an online resource for reliable health information. Residents of South Carolina will find facts and figures on the state's major health problems, links to health resources, group-specific health information and more.

United Way Responds

United Way has increased funding to provide greater access to health care. Last year, United Way supported medical clinics provided critical health services to more than 3,500 low-income, working individuals and their families.
Through ongoing research, United Way identified a significant need for dental care for low-income families. Because no programs existed in the community to address the need, United Way partnered with other community organizations to create a dental practice. United Way has invested $300,000 in the project over a three year period. This seed funding has been used to leverage an additional $1,906,725 in funding support over a three year period. once open in Summer 2007, the practice will serve 7,800 people per year.
Your contribution helps build a healthy community through programs and services that assist individuals with disabilities and their caregivers. Last year, over 660 hours of respite care was provided to parents and caregivers of children and adults with disabilities. Additionally, 922 families received respite care and support to assist them in providing care to a family member living with Alzheimer’s disease.
United Way provides ongoing funding to Camp Spearhead to give traditional summer residential camping experiences, as well as weekend camping experiences during the school year, to children and adults with disabilities. Information on campers gathered pertaining to the time July 2006 to September 2006 showed that after their camping experiences, nearly 33% of campers had improved in activities of daily living skills and nearly 50% had improved social skills.

2007-08 Community Impact Funding by Focus Area (.pdf)