home
What is Listening Tour IV, Voices for Community Change?
Healthcare Georgia Foundation is a statewide, private independent foundation located in Atlanta, Georgia. Global Evaluation & Applied Research Solutions (GEARS) Inc. is a management consulting firm also headquartered in Atlanta. In 2002, the Foundation engaged the services of GEARS Inc. to convene a series of meetings with organizations focusing on health related issues throughout the state. These meetings, referred to as the 2002 Listening Tour, provided powerful information on the health status of Georgians, efficient grant making procedures, and identification of model community-based programs throughout the state. In 2003, the Foundation re-engaged GEARS Inc. to design and conduct the 2003-2004 Listening Tours to capture a consumer perspective on health and hear their experiences with the healthcare system.
In 2008, the Foundation solicited GEARS Inc. to conduct Listening Tour IV, Voices for Community Change, as a follow-up to those Tours conducted in 2002, 2003-2004, and 2006. The purpose of this Tour is to identify best practices for soliciting information from these three audience groups, in both urban and rural settings, relating to health and healthcare in Georgia.
The process for Listening Tour IV will simultaneously engage three audience groups: consumers, safety net providers and organizations, and legislators in both urban and rural settings to:
-
Provide an opportunity for each audience group to share experiences and perspectives.
-
Identify the health and healthcare needs of Georgia’s healthcare consumers, safety net providers, and policymakers.
-
Identify and address barriers to simultaneously convening these three audience groups.
-
Identify strategies and opportunities for these three groups to work together in creating accessible healthcare.
About Healthcare Georgia Foundation
Healthcare Georgia Foundation is a statewide, private, independent foundation located in Atlanta, Georgia. During the 1990’s, BlueCross BlueShield of Georgia merged with WellPoint Health Networks. A key provision of the merger stipulated that a foundation be formed for the purpose of improving the public’s health throughout Georgia. To that end, Healthcare Georgia Foundation was established in 1999.
The Foundation’s mission is to advance the health of all Georgians and to expand access to affordable, quality healthcare for underserved individuals and communities. Through its strategic grant making, Healthcare Georgia Foundation:
-
Supports organizations that drive positive change
-
Promotes programs that improve health and healthcare among underserved individuals and communities, and
-
Connects people, partners and resources across Georgia.
Healthcare Georgia Foundation strives to enhance the spirit, well-being, and future health of the individuals, institutions, and communities it supports. Healthcare Georgia Foundation acknowledges the unique challenges and contributions of the non-profit sector and endeavors to build that sector’s capacity to help carry out the Foundation’s mission. For more information, please visit the Foundation online at www.healthcaregeorgia.org.