WELLESLEY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Boston Children’s Hospital have announced their collaboration on an Adolescent Vaping Project to help doctors and counselors care for youth with vaping addictions. Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation has provided a $100,000 grant to enable Boston Children’s Hospital to develop a training manual and protocol for primary care providers and counselors to treat vaping addiction in youth and provide ongoing consultation for treatment and prevention.
The Adolescent Vaping Project will also include hosting three training conferences across Massachusetts in 2020 to disseminate the materials, and will provide ongoing phone consultation to practices that implement the curriculum.
"We applaud Governor Baker’s actions regarding this public health crisis and we recognize the devastating impact vaping is having on our youth and communities throughout Massachusetts,” said Michael Carson, president and CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. “We are proud to partner with Boston Children’s Hospital to help address this serious and critical issue, and together we are proactively supporting awareness, prevention and care programs that address this need."
“Vaping has become the latest public health issue in our communities, especially among adolescents and there currently is no form of treatment that has been tested with youth who use vapes,” said Dr. Sharon Levy, Co-Project Director at Boston Children’s Hospital.
“There is a lot of interest in this topic and we frequently get calls from primary care colleagues asking for advice on how to manage vaping and help kids quit. We are creating a youth vaping treatment curriculum that relies heavily on our clinical experience in addiction medicine, what is known about tobacco addiction and other work we are doing to understand what kids think of e-cigarettes. Through this project funded by Harvard Pilgrim we will teach this youth vaping treatment curriculum to other health care providers by creating a guide and demonstrating how to use it with their patients,” added Dr. Levy.
About Boston Children’s Hospital
Boston Children’s Hospital is ranked the #1 children’s hospital in the nation by U.S. News & World Report and is the primary pediatric teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. Home to the world’s largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center, its discoveries have benefited both children and adults since 1869. Today, more than 3,000 scientists, including 8 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 18 members of the National Academy of Medicine and 12 Howard Hughes Medical Investigators comprise Boston Children’s research community. Founded as a 20-bed hospital for children, Boston Children’s is now a 415-bed comprehensive center for pediatric and adolescent health care. For more, visit our Discoveries blog and follow us on social media @BostonChildrens, @BCH_Innovation, Facebook and YouTube.
About Harvard Pilgrim
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and its family of companies provide health benefit plans, programs and services to more than 3 million members and customers, including its subsidiaries that serve national self-insured and population health customers, in New England and beyond. A leading not-for-profit health services company, we guide our members – and the communities we serve – to better health. Founded by doctors 50 years ago, we’re building on our legacy. In partnership with our expansive network of doctors and hospitals, we’re improving health outcomes and lowering costs through clinical quality and innovative care management. Our commitment to the communities we serve is driven by the passion of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation. Through its work, low- and moderate-income families are gaining greater access to fresh, affordable food — a cornerstone to better health and well-being. Learn more at www.harvardpilgrim.org.
About Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation
Created in 1980, The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation supports Harvard Pilgrim's mission to improve the quality and value of health care for the people and communities we serve. The Harvard Pilgrim Foundation provides the tools, training and leadership to help build healthy communities throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. In 2018, the Harvard Pilgrim Foundation awarded more than $1.25 million in grants to 855 nonprofit organizations in the region. Since its inception in 1980, the Foundation has awarded $150 million in funds and resources throughout the four states. For more information, please visit www.harvardpilgrim.org/foundation.