The Helmsley Charitable Trust

Every effort in reversing cardiac arrest aims to get the heart beating again. At Helmsley, we're supporting advancements in ECMO—extracorporeal membrane oxygenation—as the future of resuscitation medicine. The brain requires oxygen, which is supported by blood flow. ECMO can function as the heart and lungs, giving physicians time to reverse the cause of a cardiac arrest. However, resuscitation is still largely dependent on time. This is why we worked with Dr. Demetris Yannopoulos Yannopoulos at the University of Minnesota to create the world's first ECMO truck. It takes ECMO capability on the road so patients can get treated faster. Over the last seven years, Dr. Yannopoulos has transformed the use of ECMO. His work has been featured in the New York Times Magazine, where he noted that his ambitious vision initially seemed like science fiction. This #RestartaHeartDay and always, we're proud to support Dr. Yannopoulos, his team at the University of Minnesota Medical School, and Fairview Health Services as they save time and save lives. Read Rural Healthcare Program Officer Wayne Booze's interview of Dr. Yannopoulos: https://lnkd.in/eXxFifhi

Helmsley's Chief Investment Officer Joshua Fenton was one of the featured speakers at the inaugural NYC pop-up event for The Investment Diversity Exchange (TIDE), which works to foster a more diverse and equitable financial industry. Fenton and his team seek out funds that are majority-owned by women and people of color, as their unique perspectives means they may be able to identify investment opportunities overlooked by others.

Neglected tropical diseases (#NTDs) impact 1 out of every 5 people globally. They are a group of treatable viral, bacterial, and parasitic diseases that affect the world's poorest people, cause suffering and often life-altering disability, including blindness. This #WorldSightDay, we want to highlight some of the organizations working to eradicate river blindness and trachoma, two NTDs that impact sight. Sightsavers is focused on banishing trachoma, which can cause blindness, from Zambia by December 2025. The organization is helping Zambia’s Ministry of Health to eliminate the disease in 33 trachoma-endemic districts. We also support The END Fund and the Reaching the Last Mile Fund work to eliminate river blindness and lymphatic filariasis in Africa. While infectious diseases like West Nile, Zika, and Covid-19 dominate global headlines, NTDs have quietly persisted. It is up to us to help eliminate them. Read an insight on NTDs written by Helmsley Trustee Walter Panzirer: https://lnkd.in/eg_g_55f

At Helmsley, we aim to make better futures for all by increasing access to healthcare, advancing new research and ideas, and improving the quality of everyday life. Mental health is a huge part of the work we do; we believe everyone deserves access to whole-person care. Our New York City program funds initiatives like the INSTITUTE FOR COMMUNITY LIVING, INC's STEPs, a step-down IMT model for individuals who would benefit from mental health support but no longer require intensive care. We also support New Destiny Housing Corporation's mental health aftercare efforts to improve housing and health stability for domestic violence survivors and their families. Additionally, we fund NYC Health + Hospitals' ExpressCare. Our funding for ExpressCare helps them reduce barriers for homeless and vulnerable populations by offering mental health care virtually. Telebehavioral health is also a part of our rural healthcare grantmaking. Through Virtual Crisis Care, law enforcement officers are connected to mental health professionals through tablets. Approximately 20% of 911 calls involve someone experiencing a mental health emergency; through Virtual Crisis Care, officers are able to de-escalate situations with trained professionals. We also fund EmPATH units at CentraCare in St. Cloud, Minnesota, Sheridan County Memorial Hospital in Sheridan, Wyoming, and Billings Clinic, in Billings, Montana. EmPATH units provide calm environments for people experiencing mental health crises. We also supported the creation of targeted content by Crohn's and Colitis Young Adults Network. Around 25% of people living with IBD are diagnosed as minors. Through CCYAN's programming, young people with Crohn's disease can find a supportive space to explore the impact of the disease on mental health. Learn more about Helmsley and our behavioral grantmaking this #WorldMentalHealthDay: https://helmsleytrust.org/

It is essential to consider intersectionality when grantmaking. Since 2008, the goal of our Rural Healthcare Program has been to ensure that every person has access to high quality healthcare, regardless of their zip code. Rural communities were not receiving the same level of support as their urban counterparts, despite having unique difficulties in accessing healthcare. Recent research on LGBTQ+ grantmaking has revealed a similar disparity between the amount of financial support received to percentage of the population. Just as we set out to help close the gap for rural grantmaking 16 years ago, we want to help close the gap in support for LGBTQ+ folks today. Through a recent grant to The Trevor Project, we hope to support people who sit at the intersection of these two underrepresented groups in philanthropy — rural Americans and LGBTQ+ youth. Intersectionality must be a part of grantmaking, and we hope other philanthropies will join us as we work to end LGBTQ+ youth suicide. Helmsley Trustee Walter Panzirer recently wrote an op-ed for the Las Vegas Sun about our decision to partner with The Trevor Project and the importance of intersectional grantmaking: https://bit.ly/3XOQgNb #SuicidePreventionAwarenessMonth

More than 90% of stroke patients experience some form of disability, and more than 11% experience a second stroke within a year. We know that every minute saved in stroke treatment can directly improve survival and recovery rates. Helmsley recently expanded our support for American Heart Association's Mission: Lifeline Stroke Initiative. This program connects hospitals, EMS, and first responders into a system designed to deliver fast, effective care using proven guidelines. Learn more about the work we are doing to improve the full spectrum of stroke care: https://lnkd.in/eyKqtvrb

Helmsley staff recently volunteered with GrowNYC to help clean up and beautify their teaching garden to better serve the many schools that come to learn about agriculture and ecology. GrowNYC works to make New York a greener city. They help New Yorkers experience healthier and more sustainable lives by improving food access, increasing green space, and educating over 70,000 people each year about the natural environment. To learn more about them (or volunteer yourself!): https://www.grownyc.org/

In 2022, Helmsley and Americares launched a 3-year program to improve the health of women and children in the Ashanti and Bono regions of Ghana. With the local Ghanaian nonprofit Women’s Health to Wealth as a key partner, the project is operating across multiple sites, including schools and clinics. The program has established: ?? School-Based Girls’ Clubs: Across 50 health-focused clubs, adolescent girls engage in learning and empowerment sessions to enhance their sexual and reproductive health knowledge. ?? Well-Woman Clinics: 13 clinics now offer screening and referrals for sexually transmitted diseases. ?? Essential Newborn Care Program: Health care providers at over 100 sites are now trained in neonatal resuscitation and newborn care. ?? Supply-Chain Management Support: Resource support to facilitate the efficient distribution of medicines and supplies to health centers. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/edsNynA6

Thank you again to everyone who participated at our symposium on “Understanding and Preventing Hypoglycemia in Diabetes”, held at #EASD2024! Our speakers covered topics ranging from disrupted alpha cell function, dysregulation in alpha and delta cells, and advancements in therapies currently in clinical trial. If you were unable to attend our meeting, Close Concerns has covered highlights from each day of EASD. Read more about their insights from our event: https://bit.ly/3zbmatX #Hypoglycemia #Type1Diabetes #Type2Diabetes #T1D #T2D #AlphaCells #BetaCells #Glucagon

Multimillion dollar funding boost for our world-first Crohn’s treatment research! We’re excited to share that the Bionics Institute has been awarded AUD$4.8 million (USD$3.2 million) by The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (USA) to fund research into the development of a world-first, personalised, electrical treatment for Crohn’s disease. Led by Professor James Fallon and Associate Professor Sophie Payne, our researchers will upgrade a Bionics Institute vagus nerve stimulation device, currently in clinical trials for treating Crohn’s disease, into an intelligent device that monitors inflammation and adjusts therapeutic stimulation in real time. “The current version of this device is programmed to give three hours of electrical stimulation per day with the intention of keeping patients with Crohn’s disease in remission. We aim to design a new version of the device that stimulates the nerve only when inflammation is detected – essentially delivering personalised therapy,” Professor Fallon explains. Dr Jessica Langer, Program Officer from The Helmsley Charitable Trust, says: “Current treatment options are insufficient to meet the needs of people with Crohn’s disease, and are often only effective in a subset of patients or lose efficacy over time. That’s why we are excited to support this novel, adaptive treatment approach, which holds promise to improve the lives of people with Crohn’s disease.” Read more about this impactful grant on our website: https://lnkd.in/gt3Ya7v5 #crohnsdisease #bionics #medicalresearch #bioengineering #vagusnerve