The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, chartered in 1986, began awarding grants in 1987. To date, the Foundation has paid out $49.6 million in grants with another $3.9 million to be paid in multi-year grants. The Foundation typically supports programs in North Carolina that help to meet the educational needs of today’s society and of future generations.

The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation supported the Community Practitioner Program (CPP) campaign with a $250,000 grant to assist in the recruitment and retention of health care providers caring for North Carolina’s vulnerable populations. With the assistance from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, the North Carolina Medical Society Foundation has been able to partner with local communities and government agencies to assist in the recruitment and retention of primary care health providers. The CPP encourages physicians, physician assistants and family nurse practitioners to live and become active members of communities that need them most in rural underserved areas of North Carolina.

The Community Practitioner Program enables health care professionals to practice primary care medicine in the areas of the state that need them most rather than choose more lucrative practices in urban areas to pay off medical school debt.

The Community Practitioner Program has seen successful retention of CPP providers, where 64% remained in their high-need communities beyond their initial five-year commitment, 73% continued to practice in rural or economically distressed communities and 85% remain in North Carolina.

Without the support from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, the Community Practitioner Program would not be able to recruit and retain quality health care providers for those in our state that need them the most.

To learn more about the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, click here.