Planned Parenthood Great Plains receives Oklahoma City Community Foundation grant

Contact: Jess Kelsey, [email protected]

OKLAHOMA CITY — Planned Parenthood Great Plains (PPGP) is pleased to announce it has received a $25,000 grant from the Oklahoma City Community Foundation (OCCF) and its Access to Health Care iFund grant program. The grant will be used to assist in funding a new sexually transmitted infections and diseases (STIs/STD) testing and treatment program, allowing Planned Parenthood Great Plains to increase screening services to the patients it serves.

With the help of this OCCF grant, PPGP’s program, “Improving Sexual Health in OKC: Increasing STI Testing and Treatment Among Young Adults,” will provide early detection of sexually transmitted infections; connection to follow-up treatment resources; and education about safer sex practices and regular preventive care at no cost to 100 uninsured patients in the Oklahoma City metro. 

"While our local public health care system is responding under the COVID-19 pandemic, more Oklahomans are relying on PPGP for STI and HIV testing and treatment.” Brandon Hill, PhD, Planned Parenthood Great Plains president and CEO, said. "This grant will pilot a program to help bridge the gap in STI testing and treatment and increase access to high quality sexual and reproductive health care for the Oklahoma City community. We appreciate the support of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation." 

There is a dire need to curb the STI epidemic in Oklahoma, and PPGP's project addresses that challenge head on. PPGP offers systems-level intervention to this critical problem by serving nearly 4,000 patients annually at its health centers in Oklahoma City and Edmond. 

According to the 2018 STD Surveillance Report, Oklahoma exceeded the national average for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and primary and secondary syphilis. Oklahoma is also one of seven "hotspot" states for HIV infection. 

Patients in Oklahoma County encounter geographic and other social and structural barriers to care, as well as a lack of providers trained in inclusive and non-judgmental reproductive and sexual health care. Additionally, COVID-19 has impeded care, with local health departments shifting resources away from HIV and STI testing and treatment to the pandemic. 

Founded in 1969, the Oklahoma City Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity that works with donors to create charitable funds that will benefit our community both now and in the future. An initiative of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation Trustees, the iFund grant program utilizes gifts from donors to support services for children and elderly, as well as provide access to health care. To learn more about the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, visit www.occf.org. 

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Planned Parenthood Great Plains has been a leading provider of sexual and reproductive health care for nearly 85 years, serving women, men, and families in communities across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Each year, we provide care to more than 30,000 people in our 10 health centers. We believe that every person deserves to have access to the resources and information they need in order to make decisions about their own health.