Johns Hopkins Children’s Center’s Harriet Lane Clinic and the Children’s Medical Practice at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center were selected as winners of the U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration Promoting Pediatric Primary Prevention (P4) Phase 2 Challenge.

The competition was started to support solutions to the issue of declining rates of vaccinations and well-child visits among pediatric populations during the COVID-19 pandemic, which could leave young children and communities vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, chickenpox and pertussis.

The multidisciplinary team, led by Julia Kim, M.D., M.P.H., associate vice chair of pediatric ambulatory quality at the Children’s Center, was honored for its innovative approach to improving key pediatric health performance measures, including the number of well-child visits, well-child disparities and vaccination doses of specific immunizations.

The $25,000 award earned from the achievement will support the ongoing efforts of Hopkins Community Connection (HCC), a program in both clinics that links patients and families to essential resources and services such as food, housing, child care and employment. HCC undergraduate student volunteer advocates and community health workers help clinical staff members address families’ financial needs, which have been exacerbated by the pandemic.