Weymouth, MA – February 1, 2021 – The Rockland Trust-Blue Hills Charitable Foundation presented a $125,000 grant to South Shore Health for their new program: An Innovative Vision for Behavioral Health (BH) and Substance Use Disorders (SUD). This new program seeks to further South Shore Health's mission to improve the health and wellbeing of the South Shore community by offering more than one million individuals, across all cultural backgrounds, access to essential BH and SUD services.
“We are honored to support South Shore Health and thankful for the work they are doing to help provide our communities with access to these essential services,” said Christopher Oddleifson, Rockland Trust Chief Executive Officer. “The isolation and increased anxiety brought on by the pandemic has created an even greater need for BH and SUD services, and we know that South Shore Health’s program will provide relief and have a meaningful impact throughout our community.”
While the program is not yet fully operational, components of the BH and SUD programs launched in 2019 and have already made significant strides. South Shore Health’s Addiction Consult Service has already referred 975 individuals into treatment from the hospital since its inception. The Bridge Program (which focuses on addiction recovery) conducted 245 patient intakes and generated over 1,000 follow-up visits. The Perinatal Behavioral Health Clinic (which services women post-pregnancy) provided comprehensive medication management and short-term therapy for 373 new mothers and conducted 1,657 follow-ups. These numbers are early indicators of the demand for the critical behavioral health services that South Shore Health provides, and proves that the organization is well on the way to servicing one million individuals in the community.
“When you realize you need treatment, it can be difficult to know where to turn,” said Allen Smith, MD, President & CEO, South Shore Health. “We are a door for the community; a source of medical expertise for behavioral health and substance use disorders for people that seek treatment.”
“The Rockland Trust-Blue Hills Charitable Foundation gift is so tremendously appreciated,” Dr. Smith said. “We are very grateful for its support of our behavioral health programs and the patients and families that benefit from them.”
Rockland Trust's affiliated charitable foundations focus on giving that supports affordable housing, community development, education, financial literacy, health and human services, and youth programs. Rockland Trust’s charitable foundations provided roughly $890,000 to organizations focused on health and human service organizations across Massachusetts and Rhode Island in 2020.
About Rockland Trust-Blue Hills Charitable Foundation, Inc.
The Rockland Trust-Blue Hills Charitable Foundation, Inc. became affiliated with Rockland Trust in 2019 and has contributed more than 7 million dollars to non-profit organizations.
About INDB and Rockland Trust
Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ Global Select Market: INDB) is the holding company for Rockland Trust Company, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Massachusetts. Rockland Trust was named to The Boston Globe's "Top Places to Work" 2020 list, an honor earned for the 12th consecutive year. In 2020, Rockland Trust was ranked the #1 Bank in Massachusetts according to Forbes World's Best Banks list. Rockland Trust has a longstanding commitment to equity and inclusion. This commitment is underscored by initiatives such as Diversity and Inclusion leadership training, a colleague Allyship mentoring program, numerous Employee Resource Groups focused on providing colleague support and education, reinforcing a culture of mutual respect and advancing professional development, and Rockland Trust’s sponsorship of diverse community organizations through charitable giving and employee-based volunteerism. Rockland Trust is deeply committed to the communities it serves, as reflected in the overall "Outstanding" rating received in its most recent Community Reinvestment Act performance evaluation. Rockland Trust offers a wide range of banking, investment, and insurance services. The Bank serves businesses and individuals through approximately 100 retail branches, commercial and residential lending centers, and investment management offices in eastern Massachusetts, including Greater Boston, the South Shore, Cape Cod and Islands, Worcester County, and Rhode Island. Rockland Trust also offers a full suite of mobile, online, and telephone banking services. Rockland Trust is an FDIC member and an Equal Housing Lender. To find out why Rockland Trust is the bank "Where Each Relationship Matters®," please visit RocklandTrust.com.
