This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Kaiser Permanente Named California 'Foundation of the Year'

Governor’s 2013 Volunteer Service Awards awards presentation honors organizations statewide that are leaders in creating programs and providing volunteers to assist Californians in need

OAKLAND, Calif. — Kaiser Permanente is among eight recipients this year of Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr.’s highest volunteer awards, which recognize innovation in public service and volunteerism that have made a positive impact on communities across California.

The 2013 Volunteer Service Awards were presented at a ceremony at the California State Capitol in Sacramento on May 22, at which Kaiser Permanente was named “Foundation of the Year.” “This honor is a tribute to the thousands of Kaiser Permanente employees and physicians who volunteer their time and expertise to help improve community health across California,” said Yvette Radford, vice president for external and community affairs for Kaiser Permanente in Northern California. “This work reflects Kaiser Permanente’s mission since its inception, which emphasizes improving the total health not only of our members, but of everyone in the communities we serve.”

In its citation, the California Volunteers Office applauded Kaiser Permanente for making a successful investment in service and volunteering models that address community needs. 
In 2012, Kaiser Permanente invested more than $230 million in community-focused programs and services in California. By creating programs based on comprehensive needs assessments in individual communities, Kaiser Permanente “designed a charitable contribution program that meets specific needs of vulnerable populations throughout the state, working towards eliminating health disparities,” the organization said.

In addition to designing programs, Kaiser Permanente also engaged its physicians and other staff to volunteer to teach members of underserved communities how to use the prevention and treatment programs available in their communities. Those volunteers have assisted community clinics in treating more than 100,000 low-income patients at high risk for heart attack and stroke by pairing charitable funding with clinical expertise and volunteer physician mentors.

Kaiser Permanente also participates in Operation Access, in which its physicians and other health-care staff volunteer thousands of hours to perform free surgeries for low-income and uninsured people referred to them by community clinics.

Other recipients of the Governor’s awards this year included the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles, Muslims and Jews Inspiring Change and Bank of America. For more information about the awards, and about the California Volunteers office, please visit www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 9.1 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to kp.org/newscenter.  

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?