Cigna Foundation Gives Three-Year, $450,000 Grant to Bright Star Community Outreach to Address Trauma among Victims of Violen...
November 08 2017 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
- Community helpline provides trauma
counseling to Bronzeville neighborhood
- Trusted faith and community leaders
staff helpline, trained by NATAL-Israel experts
- Committed to ending the stigma
surrounding mental health challenges
The Cigna Foundation today announced a $450,000 World of
Difference grant to be provided over three years to help address
trauma among victims of violence in the Bronzeville and neighboring
sections of Chicago. The grant is to Bright Star Community Outreach
(BSCO) led by lifelong Chicago resident, Pastor Chris Harris,
Senior Pastor of the Bright Star Church of God In Christ and CEO of
BSCO.
Through the grant, the Cigna Foundation joins Northwestern
Medicine, University of Chicago Medicine, and the United Way of
Metropolitan Chicago, who all helped to develop The Urban
Resilience Network (TURN) Model – a BSCO initiative that is
designed to empower the community to lead healthy, safe, and
self-sufficient lives through parenting, workforce development,
advocacy, mentoring and counseling.
“BSCO is committed to being a national leader in trauma
counseling and ending the stigma that surrounds mental health
support. With the support of Cigna, BSCO and its partners believe
the TURN Model can be an effective, scalable and replicable model
to reduce the devastating effects of trauma in underserved
communities. There is great potential to make a tremendous impact
in Bronzeville and surrounding communities,” Pastor Harris
said.
The first year of the grant will support trauma counseling
through the BSCO’s TURN Trauma Helpline – providing trauma
counseling and mental health support through faith and community
leaders who are trained and certified professionals. The
Chicago-based toll-free number is 833-TURN-123. Over time, the
grant also will support care coordination, increased access to
mental health support services, and best practices that can be
replicated in other urban environments facing high levels of
violence.
The helpline is currently staffed by trained faith and community
leaders, with the capacity to provide trauma counseling from 9 a.m.
to 6 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. As demand and support
increases for the helpline, BSCO will train more faith and
community leaders in the trauma program. BSCO anticipates
responding to 130 calls per week by the end of its first year of
operation. Most of the trained faith and community leaders are
serving as TURN Ambassadors. The ambassadors focus on increasing
mental health awareness within the community and helping them to
become more trauma-informed. They do this through partnerships with
agencies and organizations in the health care, education, first
responder, business, and faith community sectors. Additionally,
they present material about the TURN Model and help to raise
awareness in the community about the services offered at BSCO.
“Cigna is proud to partner with Bright Star, Northwestern
Medicine, University of Chicago Medicine and the United Way as we
wrap our arms around this community where we live and work, and
which our customers call home,” said Michael Phillips, President,
Cigna Midwest Markets.
To help develop the right approach for Chicago, BSCO engaged
NATAL, an Israeli-based organization that is an expert in violence
intervention and resiliency programs to treat psychological trauma
resulting from living in areas with high rates of violence.
Representatives from NATAL conducted an evaluation of Bronzeville
and recommended the development of the community helpline to
provide support and guidance to residents who have experienced
trauma from violence.
“We believe the helpline will be a vital resource for the
residents of Bronzeville and surrounding communities. All community
members will have access to the helpline should they find
themselves struggling with trauma, whether prolonged or triggered
by a violent event,” said Mary Engvall, executive director of the
Cigna Foundation. “We have found that faith communities can be very
effective in improving lives in the neighborhoods they serve.”
In conjunction with the launch of the helpline, BSCO established
a Care Coordination Subcommittee to develop a model for providing
access to follow-up mental health services after initial contact
with a community resident has been made through the Helpline. BSCO
anticipates additional services will include in-person counseling
sessions, group counseling, case management services, and treatment
at a local health center or partner organization; along with other
wrap around services needed. See more about BSCO at
BrightStarCommunityOutreach.com.
About the Cigna Foundation
The Cigna Foundation, founded in 1962, is a private foundation
funded by contributions from Cigna Corporation (NYSE: CI) and its
subsidiaries. The Cigna Foundation supports organizations sharing
its commitment to enhancing the health of individuals and families,
and the well-being of their communities, with a special focus on
those communities where Cigna employees live and work.
About Cigna
Cigna Corporation (NYSE: CI) is a global health service company
dedicated to helping people improve their health, well-being and
sense of security. All products and services are provided
exclusively by or through operating subsidiaries of Cigna
Corporation, including Connecticut General Life Insurance Company,
Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Life Insurance Company of
North America and Cigna Life Insurance Company of New York. Such
products and services include an integrated suite of health
services, such as medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy,
vision, supplemental benefits, and other related products including
group life, accident and disability insurance. Cigna maintains
sales capability in 30 countries and jurisdictions, and has more
than 95 million customer relationships throughout the world. To
learn more about Cigna®, including links to follow us on Facebook
or Twitter, visit www.cigna.com.
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Cigna FoundationGloria Barone,
215-761-4758Gloria.Barone@cigna.com
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