Cedars-Sinai Marina del Rey Hospital: Supporting Our Community

As Cedars-Sinai Marina del Rey Hospital marks its 50th anniversary and prepares to expand, the hospital is deepening its commitment to the surrounding community through grants to safety-net organizations that serve people experiencing homelessness and others who are vulnerable.

Cedars-Sinai is contributing more than $1.2 million to 17 nonprofit programs and organizations in Marina del Rey, Santa Monica, Venice, Culver City, Mar Vista and Del Rey. The funding will support efforts to foster housing stability, provide sustainable programs for homeless residents, and build clinical and financial capacity at community clinics. The grants also will support mental and behavioral health services, fitness and wellness initiatives, and resources for first responders.

"We've found that some of the most significant issues affecting the health of our community include housing and homelessness, mental health and access to care," said Joanne Laguna-Kennedy, MSN, RN, vice president of Hospital Operations and chief nursing officer at Cedars-Sinai Marina del Rey Hospital. "We're committed to breaking down these barriers and improving the health and wellness of our community members."

Homelessness and housing stability are critical issues in the communities surrounding Marina del Rey Hospital and throughout the county, which saw a 12% increase in homelessness compared to a year ago, according to the 2019 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count. The recent survey tallied nearly 59,000 homeless residents in the county—and an additional 600,000 people who face housing-stability issues because they spend almost all of their income on shelter.

To better serve the needs of patients experiencing homelessness, Cedars-Sinai is giving The People Concern of Marina del Rey $100,000 to expand a "navigator" program that connects homeless patients at Marina del Rey Hospital with community resources and services. The nonprofit launched the program last year with a previous $100,000 grant from Cedars-Sinai.

Other grants will help nearby communities create sustainable solutions that better serve their homeless residents. St. Joseph Center of Venice will use a $100,000 grant to train first responders in Culver City to meet the needs of the city's homeless population and to teach members of the business community how to connect residents experiencing homelessness to social services.

Among grant recipients in the Marina del Rey Hospital community:

• Glen Alla Park in Del Rey is receiving $150,000 for outdoor fitness equipment and other park improvements such as picnic tables and benches.

• Beit T'Shuvah, a Culver City nonprofit is receiving $75,000 to expand its Work Therapy Program that trains and engages recovering drug and alcohol addicts in an in-house graphic design enterprise.

• The City of Santa Monica is receiving $100,000 for a feasibility study into housing and supportive services for people experiencing homelessness in the city.

• Venice Family Clinic is receiving $100,000 to enhance its ability to recruit and retain a talented and engaged workforce; $25,000 for its Street Medicine program; and $30,000 to help the clinic host a coalition of healthcare providers focused on the needs of the Westside's most vulnerable residents.

• St. Joseph Center of Venice is receiving $25,000 for its Homeless Service Center program.

• Safe Place for Youth in Venice, the only homeless youth services organization on the Westside, is receiving $25,000 to support its health and wellness clinic and transport participants to healthcare appointments, among other initiatives.

• Open Paths Counseling Center of Culver City is receiving $150,000 over two years to work with Airport Marina Counseling Services to provide mental health services to families served by the Mar Vista Family Center.