MedShare to Give Expectant Mothers in Underserved Bay Area Communities Access to State-of-the-Art Philips Ultrasound Imaging ...
May 07 2021 - 12:45PM
Business Wire
Through the Safe Birthing Initiative, Safety Net clinics like
Axis Community Health will have the ability to extend quality
maternity and neonatal care in their communities and take a step
closer to birth equity
Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health
technology, today announced that it has donated state-of-the-art
Philips ultrasound imaging solutions to MedShare, an Atlanta-based
humanitarian aid organization dedicated to global health, which
will distribute the solutions to safety net clinics like Axis
Community Health in Northern California. Through MedShare’s Safe
Birthing Initiative (SBI), which looks to strengthen the capacity
of maternity and neonatal units in communities using global best
practices, Philips ultrasounds will help to address birth equity
challenges for underserved communities in the U.S. As MedShare
engages with local clinics and helps expand their OBGYN services,
it also aims to demonstrate that the addition of diagnostic
ultrasound equipment in community-based health practices can help
patients receive better and more efficient care, which can lead to
better health outcomes for mothers and newborn children.
Despite being a region known for wealth and technological
advancement, the Bay Area is not immune to the impact of social
determinants of health. There are stark racial disparities for
pregnant women in the Bay Area who receive early prenatal care,
including those in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo,
and Santa Clara Counties.1 According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC), infant mortality in the Bay Area is
four times higher for African American women than white women, and
African American women are three to four times more likely to die
during pregnancy or childbirth.2, 3 Most deaths are preventable,
and the CDC is calling for systematic, policy-driven, and
community-based changes to the current system of maternal care.
“By adding Philips ultrasound capabilities, we can not only give
these moms their first look at their baby and make prenatal care
more convenient, we can detect issues with the pregnancy faster,
providing that woman with the support she needs for a healthy
pregnancy and baby,” said Dr. Dawnell Moody, chief medical officer
of Axis Community Health. “Our community deserves the same kind of
health technologies found in private hospitals and working with
MedShare, we have been able to expand our ability to provide
quality prenatal care. To receive this donation on Mother’s Day
makes it even more meaningful.”
The U.S. health care ‘safety-net’ is a fragmented network of
public hospitals, free or charitable clinics, federally qualified
community health centers (CHCs) and other healthcare organizations
united only by their shared mission–to provide care to individuals
regardless of ability to pay. According to the California
Association of Free and Public Clinics, there are nearly 7.5
million uninsured Californians, while at the same time, free
clinics are facing an overall decrease in their funding of 20
percent.4 To help fill this gap, organizations like MedShare, whose
mission of repurposing and donating clinically viable medical
equipment in underserved communities, are helping to bring
healthcare to those who need it most.
“MedShare has worked with over 64 safety net clinics in the Bay
Area to donate supplies and equipment, and we understand that while
these organizations are serving those with the greatest need, they
are in need themselves,” said Charles Redding, chief executive
officer and president of MedShare. “Working together with partners
like Philips and Axis Community Health, we can provide clinicians
with the tools they need to strengthen care in their communities
and give every baby the chance of a great start in life.”
If you want to understand how to support birth equity, or Axis
Community Health please visit here. For more information about
Philips Healthcare Disparities and Corporate Social Responsibility
programs or MedShare, please visit here.
About Axis: Axis Community Health, located in eastern
Alameda County, provides medical, dental and behavioral health
services for low-income and uninsured patients and serves 14,000
people with 100,000 visits across all services annually. 72% of
Axis’s patients have incomes less than the federal poverty rate (up
to $25,250 for a family of 4); 22% have incomes between 101 and
200% of poverty (up to $48,500 for a family of 4). Axis staff
include physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, mental health
professionals and support personnel. Staff are multi-lingual and
provide services in a culturally-sensitive manner. Axis is a
designated Federally Qualified Health Center, and nationally
recognized as a quality leader among all clinics in the country.
Axis is committed to its mission of providing quality, affordable,
accessible and compassionate health care services that promote the
well-being of all members of the community. For more information,
visit www.axishealth.org.
About MedShare: MedShare is a 501c(3) humanitarian aid
organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of people,
communities, and our planet by sourcing and directly delivering
surplus medical supplies and equipment to communities in need
around the world. MedShare’s programmatic approach addresses
specific health challenges through its Primary Care Program,
Maternal & Child Health Program, Disaster Relief Program,
Infectious Disease Control & Prevention Program, and Biomedical
Equipment Training & Repair Service. For more than 20 years
MedShare has strengthened global healthcare and supported
sustainable development in low-resource communities. For more
information, please visit the organization’s website at
www.medshare.org.
About Royal Philips: Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA)
is a leading health technology company focused on improving
people's health and well-being, and enabling better outcomes across
the health continuum – from healthy living and prevention, to
diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced
technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver
integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company
is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient
monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health
and home care. Philips generated 2020 sales of EUR 17.3 billion and
employs approximately 77,000 employees with sales and services in
more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at
www.philips.com/newscenter.
______________________________ 1 Data provided by Kids Count
(https://datacenter.kidscount.org/), 2021 2“Pregnancy Mortality
Surveillance System.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
August 2018. www.cdc.gov 3 “Infant Mortality.” Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention: August 2018. www.cdc.gov 4
https://www.californiafreeclinics.org/uploads/2/5/8/8/25882505/nafcc_checkup_infographic_california_v2.pdf
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Silvie Casanova Philips North America 781-879-0692
Silvie.casanova@philips.com
Avi Dines Philips North America 781-690-3814
Avi.dines@philips.com
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