BETHESDA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation’s Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM program today announced a grant of $238,900 to the Sundance Research Institute to support its Honoring Your Heart on the Wind River Indian Reservation initiative.
Honoring Your Heart aims to create a coordinated clinical-community health education program to increase cardiovascular health knowledge and reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors among members of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe on the Wind River Indian Reservation in central Wyoming. The initiative will use a two-part approach that consists of Honoring the Gift of Heart Health classes followed by a 16-week Lifestyle Balance Program focused on physical activity and healthy diet.
“The Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM grant offers us an opportunity to improve cardiovascular health for American Indians through culturally tailored and community-implemented innovative lifestyle programs,” said Kathryn Langwell, president, Sundance Research Institute. “We are honored to receive this support from the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation.”
The Wind River Indian Reservation is a rural area with high rates of unemployment and poverty. Age-adjusted death rates from heart disease among American Indians in this region are 35 percent higher than the U.S. average, according to the Indian Health Service.1 Reservation residents are more likely to use tobacco, have diabetes and be overweight or obese relative to the non-Indian population in Wyoming.
“Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States, and organizations like the Sundance Research Institute are creating innovative programs to help prevent and decrease the associated risks with this devastating disease,” said James W. Blasetto, M.D., MPH, FACC, chairman of the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation. “We are grateful to Sundance Research Institute for its commitment to improving heart health in their community.”
The Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM program annually awards grants of $150,000 or more to U.S.-based nonprofit organizations dedicated to improving cardiovascular health in local communities. This year, the program awarded nearly $3.7 million in grants to 19 organizations. More than $14 million in grants have been awarded through the program since its inception in 2010.
Organizations can learn more and apply online for a Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM grant at www.astrazeneca-us.com/foundation. Applications must be submitted online no later than 5 p.m. EST on Feb. 27, 2014.
About Sundance Research Institute
Sundance Research Institute is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with offices in Bethesda, Md., and Sundance, Wyo. The organization was founded in response to recognition that rural communities, American Indian Tribes, and local governments serving economically disadvantaged populations have limited resources to address disparities in health, well-being, and economic opportunity. Sundance provides technical assistance, evaluation and data collection design services, research, and grant development support to tribes, tribal organizations, and other entities to identify community needs and resources; develop innovative strategies for addressing priorities; seek funding from federal and private sources to support and implement new programs; and develop and strengthen skills of local workforces to manage programs effectively. Sundance is committed to the principle that successful programs are those that are designed and implemented by community leadership and members who are knowledgeable about culture, traditions, and resources. Learn more at http://sundanceresearchinstitute.org.
About AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation
Established in 1993, the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation is a Delaware not-for-profit corporation and a 501(c)(3) entity organized for charitable purposes, including to promote public awareness of healthcare issues, to promote public education of medical knowledge, and to support or contribute to charitable and qualified exempt organizations consistent with its charitable purpose. Connections for Cardiovascular HealthSM was launched in 2010 through a charitable contribution of $25 million from AstraZeneca.
1 Indian Health Service. Regional Differences in Indian Health 2002-2003 Edition; 67. Retrieved from: http://www.ihs.gov/dps/files/RD_entirebook.pdf.
