Mama's Kitchen -- $35,000 Women's Nutrition Program -- North County
Program Description:
The project’s purpose was to provide Mama’s Kitchen’s Medically Tailored Meal Service (formerly the Home-Delivered Meal Service) to North County women battling the debilitating effects of critical illness and their dependent children.
The primary objectives are to remove barriers clients face in accessing the food they need to avoid malnutrition, increase medication adherence, lower health care costs, and improve quality of life.
Results:
Mama’s Kitchen exceeded its core project goals by providing 70,983 meals (19% more than estimated) to 258 critically ill North County women and their children. Of the clients who responded to their annual survey, 95% reported that their general health has stabilized or improved since receiving meals from Mama’s Kitchen. Additionally, 89% reported eating more nutritious food since receiving our service, and 84% reported having fewer emergency room/hospitalizations.
Future Plans:
Mama’s Kitchen’s plans for the future include our focus on both growth and sustainability, with three core initiatives:
- Mama’s Kitchen became the second organization in the nation to receive accreditation as a Medically Tailored Meal provider from the Food is Medicine Coalition, ensuring the high quality of our service for years to come.
- With the launch of the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal initiative (CalAIM), medically tailored meals are now a service eligible for reimbursement for Medi-Cal patients, allowing wider reach to more critically ill individuals.
- Mama’s Kitchen recently secured American Rescue Plan Act funding to launch a shipped meal pilot, further widening the reach of our current delivery routes, including rural East County, tribal communities, and unincorporated areas of San Diego County.
