For Immediate Release: March 15, 2004

For More Information Contact:

Lori L. Henshey, Communications Specialist

West Virginia Hospital Association

304/353-9747

Fax: 304/344-9745

HEALTHCARE EDUCATION FOUNDATION AWARDED GRANTS FOR DAY ONE PROGRAM

CHARLESTON, WV – The Healthcare Education Foundation of West Virginia has been awarded grants from The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation and the West Virginia Health Care Authority to support its DAY ONE Program. The Healthcare Education Foundation is a subsidiary of the West Virginia Hospital Association (WVHA).

“DAY ONE is an investment in West Virginia’s children and families, which is ultimately an investment in West Virginia’s future,” stated Steven Summer, President and CEO of the WVHA. “The generous financial support provided by these grants will allow us to offer training, materials and assistance to hospitals and several other agencies. It is very exciting to offer a program that can have such a positive impact on a child’s future.”

DAY ONE is an early education and parental education program that stresses the benefits of early infant brain stimulation and its impact upon children’s future learning abilities. The program encourages parents to become their baby’s first teachers, thus empowering them to establish positive learning patterns that began in infancy and last a lifetime. The project is based upon extensive research in neonatal education, according to Cinny Kittle, Project Director. DAY ONE will be made available to West Virginia hospitals and other organizations throughout the state.

DAY ONE also offers information about various issues and relevant resources, including the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC), the dangers of secondhand cigarette smoke, nutrition, daycare, seatbelt safety, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

For more information, visit the DAY ONE Program Web site at www.wvha.org/day_one/index.htm.