Community Care of the Lower Cape Fear and The Harrelson Center’s “Health Hub in the Help Hub” pilot will now be a full-fledged program due to a grant from Live Oak Bank, according to a news release.

The award will be used to provide health navigation to clients who come into the Help Hub for emergency services and have health concerns, stated the release.  

The Help Hub at The Harrelson Center "serves individuals and families in need with short-term/emergency financial assistance, referrals to Harrelson Center nonprofit partners, connection to community resources, and now, healthcare navigation," officials said. 

“By adding health related questions to the intake assessment, we discovered how many clients needed help with their own health or navigating the system," said Angela Ives, Community Care of the Lower Cape Fear (CCLCF) executive director, in the release. “We embedded a care manager in the Help Hub who could help in real time and would follow up until the concern was resolved. During the pilot, we served over 240 clients – all taking place during the pandemic.”

The pilot program began through a grant from the Ministering Circle, stated the release.  

"We are so grateful that our pilot partnership with Community Care of the Lower Cape Fear, established through essential support from The Ministering Circle, will be further enhanced with this grant from Live Oak Bank. Only through multiple invested partners can we work to assure primary care is accessible to our under-insured neighbors," Meade Van Pelt, executive director of The Harrelson Center, said.

The program will also expand to educate nonprofits on The Harrelson Center campus, stated the release.

The overall goal of the program is "to reduce existing health care disparities by increasing access to health care and health resources, providing navigation through a complex healthcare system, facilitating improved health through care coordination and management of chronic conditions, and reducing barriers to health including food insecurity, housing issues, access to transportation, and interpersonal safety concerns," stated the release.  

“Live Oak is proud to support CCLCF and its work to help residents of our community gain access to healthcare in a time when people are facing very challenging situations,” said Mike Bollinger, head of pharmacy lending at Live Oak Bank and a CCLCF board member, in the release. “Equitable access to healthcare, housing, transportation, education and workforce development are vital to a thriving community and Live Oak is committed to support programming like the Health Hub to drive positive change in our region.”