Cleveland Clinic and community partners are working to provide high-speed internet to Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood in an effort to bridge healthcare access, education and economic disparities.
Five details:
1. Cleveland Clinic is partnering with health tech startup DigitalC and local businesses TransDigm Group and the Lubrizol Foundation to provide broadband to households covered in the program. DigitalC's EmpowerCLE, a wireless internet service provider, will supply the broadband.
2. Two of Cleveland Clinic's main campus buildings have EmpowerCLE installed on the rooftops to expand coverage to the Fairfax neighborhood. The company's brand ambassadors and technicians will visit the neighborhood to offer and install the service.
3. TransDigm and The Lubrizol Foundation are contributing funds for equipment cost and to help reduce monthly subscription fees.
4. The broadband installations should be completed by the second quarter of 2021.
5. Cleveland Clinic is a member of the American Connection Project Broadband Coalition which aims to bring high-speed internet to rural and underconnected areas. Cleveland Clinic leaders said they hope the move will positively affect social determinants of health, including food insecurity, housing, chronic disease, education quality and economic opportunity.
"Social determinants of health lay the foundation of a person’s overall health and have a lifelong impact on their health outcomes," said Adam Myers, MD, Cleveland Clinic's chief of population health. "By identifying areas we can help, such as providing broadband connection, and engaging with like-minded partners, we can make a difference in creating a better, healthier community for everyone."