Putting the Grand in Grandparent

North Carolina ranks in the top 10 nationwide for the number of grandparents caring for the basic needs of their grandchildren. Nearly 7 percent of North Carolina’s children are living in grandparent-headed households.

These grandparents – most are grandmothers – are incredibly special people willing to take on the responsibility all over again later in life.  And in Winston-Salem, they’re getting help from a program at Winston-Salem State University.

The Grandparenting Program is the only program in North Carolina that addresses the medical needs of custodial grandparents who are raising their grandchildren.  Custodial grandparents do not qualify for the state and federal funding available to foster and adoptive parents, and therefore oftentimes have difficulty making ends meet.  Most are African-American women, over the age of 50, who work full-time but are struggling with the costs to provide consistent health care.

That’s where Dr. Lenora Campbell and The Grandparenting Program at Winston-Salem State step in. They connect custodial grandparents with a primary care provider, so caregivers can receive full medical exams and recommended treatment for health conditions, including medications, diagnostic care and specialist care. 

“Most of our clients have chronic health conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure and many do not have health insurance,” said Campbell. 

Soon the program will be opening a health clinic where they can work with caregivers one-on-one to help them monitor and manage their health.

“These grandparents are very busy working and caring for their grandchildren and they tend to put their grandchildren’s needs first,” Campbell said.  “We hope to help them embrace the notion that they need to take care of themselves, too.”

And, they’re looking beyond health care. The program is intending to use a case management model to help grandparents become self-sufficient so they can access needed health, social, legal, financial and housing assistance.

Winston-Salem State University was the recipient of a $69,300 Health of Vulnerable Populations grant in 2007 to support The Grandparenting Program.