CLEVELAND — House minority leader Emilia Strong Sykes, said one of her missions is to help healthcare systems and residents focus more on wellness and prevention than sick and reactionary care.

 


What You Need To Know

  • A new program aimed at supporting the health and wellbeing of those living in northeast Ohio is gearing up to launch

  • State Representative Emilia Strong Sykes is spearheading the project and said community partnerships are making it all possible

  • The Food Farmacy is a $500,000 state-funded pilot project in collaboration with the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank and hospital systems

“If we were able to adjust our systems to a wellness system where people could be incentivized for being healthy, and we encourage healthy behaviors, so we don't have to be so reliant upon very expensive long lengthy treatments to deal with chronic diseases, not only could we increase quality of life ,we will also save a lot of money,” Sykes said.

To get her mission in motion, she is spearheading the Food Farmacy, a $500,000 state-funded pilot project in collaboration with the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank and hospital systems.

Sykes said the program will address health disparities and food insecurity, issues that go hand in hand.

“There's such a high need for this program,” Sykes said. “So hospitals will help us with identifying patients who will be eligible for the program, who are low income or food insecure, and then the food bank will be the place in which we will be able to identify ways to get them these nutritious foods.”

Katie Carver Reed is the director of network partners and programs for Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank and said the food bank has cited a 31-percent increase in food insecurity in the region due to COVID-19. She said there are many more in need.

“That stigma, or feeling of potential judgment, is preventing them from coming and so to have a trusted person or trusted institution like your health care system, talking to you about the importance of getting food trying to reduce those barriers is important,” Carver said.

Jill Oldham, director of strategic partnerships and initiatives for the food bank, said the Food Farmacy program will go a step further to make sure patients get on, and stay on, the right track.

“Working with system providers to make sure there is a closed loop referral in this, that we are not just sending patients to pantries in our network, that are already operating and serving out community in a high regard, but how are we closing that loop and letting healthcare providers know that their patients have successfully made it to those programs so they can determine if the program has had in impact on their health outcomes,” Oldham said.

“As we start talking about health disparities, we have to look at root causes and not just band aids to get us through the next month or the next week,” Sykes said. “We're looking at things to change people's lives."

Sykes said she hopes to expand the Food Farmacy project across the state.