Kintegra is proud of its strong relationships, support and active participation with local hospitals, health departments, health advisory councils, safety-nets, community assistance coalitions, work-groups, Rotaries, non-profits and many others throughout its service area, to improve health outcomes and reduce barriers to care.
Community engagement goes deeper still, and through several key initiatives, Kintegra reaches into the community, helping to build relationships and engage residents, businesses and other stakeholders in active methods to implement change. Community engagement facilitates the connections between people and resources, the development of new leaders, and the integration of personal and professional goals by combining the talents, passions, and volunteer efforts of everyone involved.
Kintegra is activity involved in the following community engagement initiatives:
Charitable Care Clinics
Providing comprehensive care is part of our philosophy, and volunteers play an important role in our ability to offer this level of services to our patients. Many local volunteer providers and members of the community dedicate their time, talent and resources to help achieve this goal. We are grateful for their charitable contribution and service to our organization.
Through the help of numerous volunteer providers and members of the community, eligible patients can benefit from several specialty clinics and services offered at various locations. These services include eye exams and corrective lenses, podiatry services, women’s screening clinics, minor surgical procedures, specialty dental care, nephrology and endocrinology clinics, to name a few.
Community Resource Advocacy
Every Kintegra Family Medicine practice has a staff member – a Community Resource Advocate (CRA), who can assist patients with enrollment in pharmaceutical charity programs, Medicare, ACA Health Insurance, and disability applications through the SOAR program. He/she can provide education and complete paperwork for new uninsured patients, refer patients to Medicaid, and to other community resources based on their expressed needs. The CRA staff members are also trained in SHIIP (Seniors’ Heath Insurance Information Program) coordination, and can help counsel Medicare beneficiaries and caregivers about Medicare, Medicare supplements, Medicare Advantage , Part D and long term care insurance. To learn more, and to reach one of our Community Resource Advocates, click here.
SHIIP Coordination
The Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP), a program of the NC Department of Insurance, counsels Medicare beneficiaries and caregivers about Medicare, Medicare supplements, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and long-term care insurance. GFHS’ SHIIP coordinators, along with several volunteers, engage in numerous community events at senior living communities, churches, and more, providing free and unbiased education and assistance regarding Medicare health care insurances and supplements.
Community Centered Health
The Community Centered Health (CCH) model provides a framework for primary care to address individual health needs while systematically addressing upstream community conditions and social determinants of health that affect individual well-being.
Kintegra began its Community Centered Health work in the Highland community (Gastonia, NC) with funding and technical assistance from Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC Foundation. In the last five years, it has also received support from BUILD Health Challenge, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. Over $2 million in funding and technical assistance has been invested in the Highland community through this work. 
The Healthier Highland Collaborative, which works to make systemic changes that positively impact the health of the Highland Community, was formed through the Community Centered Health work. The Collaborative is led by Highland residents with community partners playing a supporting role. Accomplishments, highlighted in the video below, include the formation of a community garden for youth, over $1 million in infrastructure investments into Highland by the City of Gastonia, hiring a community health worker for Highland Health Center, and the election of the most diverse City Council in Gastonia’s history.
Most recently, the Collaborative has established a community restaurant which provides great-tasting, healthy meals at an affordable price. R.A.M.S Kitchen (Really Amazing Meals with Soul) brings a much-needed healthy eating option to Highland – a food desert. R.A.M.S. Kitchen was created by and is staffed by Highland residents; however, it welcomes all in the community to partake of its food.
Healthier Highland Collaborative 2021
Gaston Community Healthcare Commission
The Gaston Community Healthcare Commission’s (GCHC) primary mission is to develop a workable community-wide agenda to improve the health status of citizens in Gaston County. This work is accomplished through a network of organizations and people involved in health care access, funding, distribution and resource allocation.
GCHC was formed more than 30 years ago to address community needs through collaborative action. Success through the years has included Safe Kids for immunizations and car seat checks, Health at Home-a self-care guide, Adolescent Sexual Health (Gaston Youth Connected), a Parish Nurse program, and the Fitness and Nutrition Council.
More recently, GCHC refocused its work to three priority areas:
- Healthy Gaston – A county-wide program aimed at developing a culture of wellness, which helps business, schools, and churches implement employee wellness programs. Kintegra is proud to be a Silver Award recipient.
- Walkability and Obesity – A workgroup focused on policy change and advocacy that will establish environments to encourage community residents to start and continue fitness and nutrition programs, ultimately preventing and reducing the incidence of obesity and chronic conditions associated with obesity (heart disease stroke, diabetes, and cancers).
- Mental Health and Substance Abuse – A Workgroup focused on opiod addiction and the reduction of over-prescribing controlled substances by medical providers
Kintegra has, and continues to be an engaged member and supporter of GCHC.
