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The influence of Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) program on community pediatrics
Neelkamal S Soares1, Wendy L Hobson, Holly Ruch-Ross
1120 Hamm Dr, Suite 2, Lewisburg, PA 17837. nssoares@geisinger.edu.
Insights
The Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) Program funds pediatrician-led projects improving child health and access to care. Most funded community projects and partnerships continue beyond initial grants, demonstrating lasting impact.
Area of Science:
- Community child health
- Pediatric primary care
- Health services research
Background:
- The Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) Program supports pediatricians in community-based health improvement and advocacy.
- Previous evaluation of the CATCH Program was conducted in 1998.
- Current evaluation needed to assess recent program impact and characteristics.
Purpose of the Study:
- Describe characteristics of CATCH grant recipients and their projects.
- Assess the community impact and sustainability of CATCH-funded initiatives.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of seed grants in promoting child health and healthcare access.
Main Methods:
- Prospective data collection from CATCH applications (2006-2012) for grantee and project details.
- Post-project 2-year follow-up surveys for projects funded (2008-2010) to assess outcomes and sustainability.
- Analysis of project topic areas, target populations, and community engagement.
Main Results:
- 401 projects funded (2006-2012), primarily in general pediatrics, focusing on nutrition, healthcare access, and medical home.
- Projects predominantly targeted children covered by Medicaid (85%) and uninsured children (33%), with significant engagement of Latino populations (75%).
- Of surveyed grantees (69% response rate), 90% completed projects, and 86% sustained them; 77% developed community partnerships and 73% increased community recognition of child health issues.
Conclusions:
- CATCH Program effectively funds community-based projects led by pediatricians addressing critical child health needs.
- Funded projects and developed community partnerships demonstrate significant sustainability beyond initial grant periods.
- The program successfully leverages seed funding to foster long-term community support and improve child healthcare access and outcomes.
Abstract:
The CATCH (Community Access to Child Health) Program, which supports pediatricians who engage with the community to improve child health, increase access to health care, and promote advocacy through small seed grants, was last evaluated in 1998. The objective was to describe the characteristics of CATCH grant recipients and projects and assess the community impact of funded projects. Prospective data was collected from CATCH applications (grantee characteristics, topic area and target population for projects funded from 2006-2012) and post-project 2-year follow-up survey (project outcomes, sustainability, and impact for projects funded from 2008 through 2010). From 2006 through 2012, the CATCH Program awarded 401 projects to grantees working mostly in general pediatrics. Eighty-five percent of projects targeted children covered by Medicaid, 33% targeted uninsured children, and 75% involved a Latino population. Main topic areas addressed were nutrition, access to health care, and medical home. Sixty-nine percent of grantees from 2008 to 2010 responded to the follow-up survey. Ninety percent reported completing their projects, and 86% of those projects continued to exist in some form. Grantees reported the development of community partnerships (77%) and enhanced recognition of child health issues in the community (73%) as the most frequent changes due to the projects. The CATCH Program funds community-based projects led by pediatricians that address the medical home and access to care. A majority of these projects and community partnerships are sustained beyond their original CATCH funding and, in many cases, are leveraged into additional financial or other community support.
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