Community Benefits Program

In Massachusetts, nonprofit hospitals like Lawrence General are required to have a Community Benefits Program as part of our commitment to fulfilling our tax-exempt status.This requirement ensures that LGH contributes to the public good beyond our primary role of providing health care services locally to all who need these services. The LGH Community Benefits Program is designed to address broader community health needs, support public health initiatives, and improve overall health outcomes across our service area, and is tailored to the needs and priorities that emerge from each CHNA such as chronic diseases, mental health needs, access to care for underserved populations, and health disparities.

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and the Department of Public Health (DPH) oversee and regulate the Community Benefits Program.

Please see our Community Engagement page for more on how LGH engages with community residents to promote health and wellness. You can read the hospital’s last Community Benefit Program report here.

Hospital Sponsorship
Sponsorships are an important part of the hospital’s Community Benefits Program. LGH endeavors to make a set amount of funding available each year to support organizations working to impact social determinants of health (SDOH) in the Merrimack Valley such as housing, food insecurity, economic insecurity, health literacy, care access, transportation, and more.

Some sponsorships are awarded to support an organization’s annual meeting or gala, and others are awarded to support a specific project focused on SDOH. Please note that funding allocated to sponsorships is extremely limited and the amounts available vary from year to year, with awards varying from $250 to $10,000. Sponsorship funds are made available at the beginning of each fiscal year, which runs from October 1 to September 30. If you would like to apply for a hospital sponsorship, please complete an application BY CLICKING HERE and submit to communitysponsorships@lawrencegeneral.org.

Improving Health Equity and Reducing Health Disparities
LGH has long been focused on providing equitable care to vulnerable populations, and since 2020 has built a robust DEI/Health Equity program. Over the past four years, the hospital has:

Deployed a full-time DEI Program Officer to lead all DEI and health equity improvement efforts.
Assessed the current state of DEI and Health Equity at LGH to identify organizational strengths and gaps.
Developed and implemented a multi-year DEI/Health Equity Improvement Plan based on the assessments described above.
Positioned DEI and Health Equity as top priorities within the hospital’s Strategic Plan.
Created a governance structure for DEI and Health Equity that includes active Executive and Board involvement.
Developed a Health Equity data analytics dashboard to stratify and analyze health outcomes by race, ethnicity, language, gender, and more.
Initiated and improved collection of our patients’ gender identity, preferred pronouns, preferred name, sexual orientation, disability, accommodation needs, and health related social needs in order to provide the best possible care tailored to each patient. Read more about these efforts here.
Partnered with many community-based organizations to connect local residents to hospital careers, provide youth internships, and welcome more diversity into our workforce.
Used DEI/Health Equity education and listening sessions for staff, new hires, Board members, and leaders to build organizational awareness about bias and cultural humility in healthcare.
LGH is the first hospital in the state of Massachusetts (and the first Meditech hospital in the U.S.) to receive the Joint Commission Health Equity Certification

Community Benefits Advisory Council (CBAC)
The CBAC is a crucial part of our Community Benefits program required by the state of Massachusetts. LGH is extremely fortunate to have close, collaborative community partnerships and active community participation in our CBAC. The following are currently represented on our CBAC alongside our Executive and Clinical leaders:

Greater Lawrence Family Health Center
City of Lawrence Public Health Department
City of Lawrence Police Department
City of Lawrence Mayor’s Health Task Force
Lawrence Methuen Community Coalition
City of Methuen Public Health Department
City of Andover Public Health Department
Beth Israel Lahey Hospital Behavioral Health Services/CBHC
Agespan
Lawrence Community Works
Groundwork Lawrence
Greater Lawrence Community Action Council
Family Services of the Merrimack Valley
Andover Public Schools
Merrimack College

If you or your organization would like to become involved in our CBAC, please email us at communitysponsorships@lawrencegeneral.org and tell us about yourself, your organization, and your interest in the hospital’s community benefit program.