Philanthropic support will help iHEART reach even more vulnerable Hoosiers

In 2023, when IU Health Foundation secured a $3.1 million in funding from Novartis Pharmaceuticals, IU Health and project partners quickly built a system for providing screenings, referrals and treatment for individuals living in three medically underserved Indianapolis neighborhoods. Those efforts proved a resounding success, providing thousands of screenings, earning community accolades and receiving invitations to expand into other neighborhoods.

People who administer iHEART hope additional support will strengthen relationships in communities where they earned trust and allow the group to expand to even more vulnerable neighborhoods to reach more Hoosiers.

Celebrating the success of iHEART Collaborative

By any measure, iHEART has succeeded. With a goal to screen 1,400 individuals within five Indianapolis zip codes – 10% of the patient population in the target neighborhoods – by the end of the grant cycle, iHEART beat its deadline by a full year.

The way the program leverages trusted community spaces barbershops to reduce hypertension has received much positive press coverage, and Indianapolis Business Journal recently nominated iHEART Collaborative for an Excellence in Healthcare award, which recognizes individuals and organizations in central Indiana that are making a significant impact on the quality of healthcare.

But iHEART is about more than recognition.

“It’s important for people to realize we love what we do,” said Reggie Wesley, program manager, Community Outreach and Engagement at IU Health. “If you have elevated ratings related to blood pressure, cholesterol or diabetes, we can suggest minor lifestyle changes to put you on a healthier path. We'll connect you to physicians at multiple healthcare systems who are accepting new patients, as well as resources at other nonprofits.”

To accomplish this, iHEART deploys Community Health Workers (CHWs), who complement their barbershop screenings for cardiovascular disease and social determinants of health with similar screenings at food pantries and other social service organizations.

“The CHWs are a cornerstone of our work,” said Tatyana Roberts, health equity administrator at IU Health. “We can’t do any of our program outreach in the community or a clinical setting without them.”

Fighting a silent killer

Hypertension offered a logical place for iHEART to start. “Hypertension affects around 50% of adults in the U.S., and the Centers for Disease Control calls it a silent killer,” Roberts said. “You don’t know you have it until you develop symptoms and it’s already too late.”

Hypertension screenings also helped iHEART connect with a community often skeptical of the healthcare system. “It just breaks my heart to think about what will happen if iHEART goes away,” Roberts said. “We’ve really strived to gain community buy-in.”

Turning away potential partners

Strong community partners have been a key to iHEART’s success, and more would like to get onboard.

So far, iHEART’s work has been limited to the zip codes covered by the original grant. The hope is that donors will step up not only to ensure continued outreach to the original population but also expansion to new neighborhoods.

“I have partners reaching out to me, and they want me to come to additional zip codes,” Wesley said. “With the launch of Indy Health District, we’d love to take this work there. It just doesn’t feel right when they want us to come, and we have to say no because they’re outside the five zip codes we target.”

To learn more about iHEART Collaborative and how your gift of any size will make all the difference to support its efforts through a donation to IU Health Foundation, contact Con Sullivan or make a secure donation online at iuhealthfoundation.org/heart.