In a bold effort to improve maternal and children’s health care in the District of Columbia and surrounding communities, the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation has generously invested $20 million to support health care programs at Sibley Memorial Hospital, a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine.

In a bold effort to improve maternal and children’s health care in the District of Columbia and surrounding communities, the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation has generously invested $20 million to support health care programs at Sibley Memorial Hospital, a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine.

The A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation has designated much of this investment to establish the Maternal Health Access Program at Sibley to improve maternal and child health outcomes in the District of Columbia. In addition, the gift will also support expanded access to pediatric radiation oncology and orthopaedic services at Sibley. 

“This is an extraordinary investment from an extraordinary foundation,” said Hasan Zia, M.D., M.B.A., interim president and CEO of Sibley Memorial Hospital. “The A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation is known for its commitment to improving community health, especially those communities traditionally underserved. We are honored they have chosen Sibley Memorial Hospital and Johns Hopkins Medicine to help advance their vision and are grateful for their past 18 years of support.”

The philanthropic investment in maternal and child health awarded to Sibley is part of a larger initiative of the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation to improve maternal and child health outcomes in the District of Columbia by bringing together a diverse coalition to overcome barriers to good health that exist both within and outside the health care system. At Sibley, this work will include efforts to improve health outcomes and support services in both maternal and fetal health, as well as within pediatric radiation oncology.

The A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation’s investment will support and expand maternal health programs already underway by Sibley Memorial Hospital and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics. The two organizations will partner with federally qualified health centers and other community-based partners to build upon an already successful obstetrics program by offering enhanced gynecologic and obstetric services to provide much needed maternal health care to a critically underserved population. 

“We are proud to have Sibley Memorial Hospital as a key partner in the Clark Foundation’s efforts to improve both maternal and neonatal outcomes in the District,” said Courtney Clark Pastrick, Board Chair of the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation. “The Maternal Health Access Program at Sibley is poised to be a critical building block of a culturally responsive system of perinatal and early pediatric support that serves all families in the District of Columbia.”    

Another significant portion of the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation investment will support pediatric proton and photon therapy. With this support, Sibley Memorial Hospital and the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center will partner to enhance the care of pediatric patients receiving radiation therapy by establishing a multidisciplinary team of providers to address the holistic social and emotional needs of patients and their families. This will include the allocation of dedicated funds to address social barriers to receiving care, including housing, transportation and access to food; developing a virtual reality program for children and teenagers to prepare patients to receive proton therapy; and enhancing the care of patients with brain tumors through neurocognitive testing and outcomes research.

Support from the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation will also allow Sibley to build upon the legacy of excellent orthopaedic care the hospital already provides through the Joseph and Alma Gildenhorn Institute for Bone and Joint Health. This support will be used to elevate orthopaedic care by enhancing the knowledge and skills of nursing and clinical staff. 

About Sibley Memorial Hospital

Sibley Memorial Hospital, a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine, in Northwest Washington, D.C., has a distinguished history of serving the community since its founding in 1890. As a not-for-profit, full-service, 318-bed community hospital, Sibley offers medical, surgical, intensive care, obstetric, oncology, orthopaedic, skilled nursing inpatient services, and a state-of-the-art 24-hour Emergency Department. Sibley’s campus, with its new patient tower, is also home to the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, the Johns Hopkins National Proton Therapy Center, Grand Oaks -- an assisted living residence -- a medical building with physician offices and an ambulatory surgery and imaging center. For more information, visit Sibley.org.