Newton-Wellesley Hospital awards $1.9 million grant to local collaborative

Newton, Mass. (November 9, 2021) – Newton-Wellesley Hospital (NWH), a member of Mass General Brigham, awarded a $1.9 million grant to WATCH Community Development Corporation (WATCH CDC) and MetroWest Collaborative Development (Metro West CD) to address housing insecurity in the communities surrounding the hospital. WATCH CDC, located in Waltham, and Metro West CD, located in Newton, will collaborate to reduce inequities in housing security of low-income tenants, particularly among communities of color and immigrant communities in Natick, Needham, Newton, Waltham, Wellesley, and Weston. NWH identified housing insecurity as the focus of its Community-Based Health Initiative (CHI) following a comprehensive review of critical needs in the area, in collaboration with an Advisory Committee comprised of key community stakeholders.

“Low-income service workers and immigrant members of our community have been hit particularly hard by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Daria Gere, Executive Director of WATCH CDC. “This grant strengthens the safety net for these most vulnerable members of our community, while also providing an exciting opportunity to partner with Newton-Wellesley Hospital to address the critical issue of housing insecurity in the cities and towns WATCH and Metro West CD serve.”

Through this four-year grant, beginning in October 2021, NWH will invest $1.9 million into the WATCH CDC and Metro West CD collaborative, which will build on existing case management-based housing clinics, with particular emphasis on reaching out to and serving low-income and immigrant tenants. The collaborative will also heighten awareness of the mental health needs of clients experiencing housing insecurity, with the assistance of a mental health consultant, and provide emergency financial assistance at its clinics. In addition, the collaborative will hire a Job and Financial Planning Coordinator to mentor clients to greater financial self-sufficiency. Both organizations will work to expand the stock of affordable housing and increase protections for tenants through community organizing and advocacy.

“This grant is a tremendous recognition of the hard work it takes to really help people solve their housing crises,” concluded Jennifer Van Campen, Executive Director of Metro West CD. “This kind of multi-year funding is unusual and is a testament to Newton-Wellesley Hospital’s commitment to addressing all of the issues that affect people’s health.”

“For 140 years, Newton-Wellesley Hospital has worked to support our neighbors and strengthen our community,” said Errol R. Norwitz, MD, President and CEO of NWH. “In order to be an invaluable asset to the cities and towns we serve, we must do everything we can to ensure every member of our community has access to safe and affordable housing – which helps provide the foundation for health and well-being.”

Earlier this year, NWH solicited grant proposals that would employ a multi-faceted approach to housing insecurity, including addressing immediate issues, reducing the impact on mental health, and increasing economic independence using a self-sufficiency coaching or mentoring model. There is a well-documented relationship between safe, secure, and affordable housing and health. Individuals facing housing insecurity are more likely to experience poor health than those in stable and secure housing, and numerous studies have documented the relationship between eviction and adverse health and mental health outcomes. Across the country, and particularly within NWH’s service area, people of color and recent immigrants are far more likely than white and higher-income residents to experience housing insecurity. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has placed even more renters at risk for eviction, reversing recent gains made in addressing racial inequities and exacerbating the negative health-related impacts of housing insecurity.

About Newton-Wellesley Hospital

Newton-Wellesley Hospital (NWH) is a comprehensive medical center and community hospital providing direct, high-quality inpatient and outpatient care in the Greater Boston community. Named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades for three consecutive years, NWH is a member of Mass General Brigham, an integrated academic healthcare system that unites great minds in medicine to make life-changing impact for patients and communities. Serving its community for 140 years, NWH places the patient and their family at the center of everything it does, excelling in prevention and wellness along with acute care and disease treatment. NWH provides a wide range of services, including medical; surgical, including robotic and bariatric; heartburn and reflux; primary care; obstetric and gynecological; cardiovascular; emergency; orthopedic; neonatal; pediatric; hematology/oncology and psychiatric care—with a medical staff of more than 1,000 physicians. NWH is also a major teaching hospital for Tufts University School of Medicine and has established post-graduate training programs for residents of Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

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