• The focus of government grant programs is on developing a better understanding of when health care outreach works--and when it doesnt.vaccinate the world image by Keith Frith from Fotolia.com
  
  The federal government is a major funder of programs in health care outreach around the country. Health care outreach can help to significantly improve public health by effectively educating the public about preventative measures, good health practices, and the needs of the medical community such as organ donation. Government funding opportunities are generally targeted toward emerging research in how to do better health care outreach, though some of its grant programs implement current knowledge about successful outreach. A couple of the agencies that administer grants in this area are the Health Resources and Services Administration and the National Institutes of Health.
  
  

Healthcare Communities Knowledge Gateway

• The Healthcare Communities Knowledge Gateway program is a funding opportunity that gives health care providers and organizations improved capabilities to perform public health outreach and share information. More specific priorities identified for this grant include efforts to increase outreach to potential organ and blood donors, outreach to public health authorities and patient safety advocates, and the sharing of information between providers. The Health Resources and Services Administration oversees this grant opportunity and provides technical assistance.
  
  Healthcare Systems Bureau
  
  Health Resources and Services Administration
  
  5600 Fishers Lane
  
  Rockville, MD 20857
  
  301-594-4483
  
  hrsa.gov
  
  

Understanding and Promoting Health Literacy

• The National Institutes of Health are federal agencies who fund research in public health, drug and vaccine development, and information technology. Among the agency's many grant opportunities is a program to promote health literacy, which is the ability to understand basic information provided to the public on how to stay healthy. Without the knowledge necessary to make informed health decisions, individuals can be susceptible to disease over the long term. Health care outreach by public health organizations and providers is an important step in helping to improve health literacy. This grant program helps fund both research into means of promoting health literacy as well as the implementation of health literacy promotion techniques known to be effective.
  
  Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research
  
  National Institutes of Health
  
  31 Center Drive
  
  Bethesda MD 20892
  
  301-402-1146
  
  obssr.od.nih.gov
  
  

Health Services Research Demonstration and Dissemination Grants

• The Health Services Research Demonstration and Dissemination Grant is another grant funded by NIH that supports health care outreach. While the priorities of this grant are multi-faceted, one of the focus areas is around health care outreach that assists with care and prevention. A major interest of this grant is on research that helps to improve the scientific understanding of which outreach methods are effective or ineffective. Additionally, projects in health care outreach funded with this opportunity may develop better metrics--methods of measurement--for assessing prevention and public health strategies.
  
  Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
  
  National Institutes of Health
  
  540 Gaither Road
  
  Rockville, MD 20850
  
  301-427-1448
  
  arhq.hhs.gov
  
  

Social and Behavioral Interventions to Increase Organ and Tissue Donation

• A second grant funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration is a program researching interventions that effectively increase organ donation. The program's funding announcement includes outreach as a major priority. As with other outreach program grants, this opportunity is intended to help fund research into effective strategies for interacting with the public in health care. Outreach programs that involve new and innovative approaches to encourage organ donation are most likely to be awarded funding from this opportunity.
  
  Health Resources and Services Administration
  
  5600 Fishers Lane
  
  Rockville, MD 20857
  
  301-443-3622
  
  hrsa.gov