Donate
Please consider supporting the Kelsey Research Foundation’s mission of improving the quality of health care through supporting medical education; creating programs that provide health education opportunities for the community; initiating research studies with Kelsey-Seybold Clinic physicians as well as developing new partnerships with hospitals, universities, research organizations, and corporations to develop life-changing clinical and health outcome research.
When you include Kelsey Research Foundation (KRF) in your estate plan, you create a lasting legacy to carry out important medical research.
Kelsey Research Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (Tax ID # 76-0637670). Gifts are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Current Research and Patient Programs:
KRF-UTHealth Center for Microbiome Research
The KRF-UTHealth Center for Microbiome Research was established in 2014 as a collaboration between KRF and UTHealth’s McGovern Medical School and School of Public Health to develop an extraordinary research initiative dedicated to unlocking the mysteries of the human microbiome. The Center is testing the theory that delivery of healthy microbiota to the lower gut can serve as a means of controlling and improving symptoms of Parkinson’s disease; Irritable Bowel Syndrome; Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, which is complicated by obesity and often by Type II Diabetes; and improve outcomes in cancer patients undergoing immunotherapy. The goal is to lead medicine away from expensive complex and toxic drugs to inexpensive natural methods to produce health that could be cost effective for all.
Bob and Vivian Smith Epilepsy Program
Established in 1988, the Epilepsy Education and Research Program demystifies epilepsy by teaching patients and their family members and friends about this neurological disorder. Staff provides information about what it means to have epilepsy, medical testing and diagnosis, seizure recognition and first aid, medications and side effects, practical tips on reducing the frequency of seizures, and pregnancy and epilepsy. This free consultation service is funded by the Bob and Vivian Smith Foundation. The Epilepsy Program also develops and conducts research to improve the clinical management of epilepsy.
Joe and Jessie Crump Cancer Program
Established in 1983, the mission of the Cancer Center is to improve the quality of cancer care and health outcomes of patients with cancer at Kelsey-Seybold. The Cancer Center continues to develop and maintain integrated programs in cancer education, prevention, patient care and research. These programs assure that patients and family members receive the highest quality health services available and provide clinicians with up-to-date information and research findings to prevent and treat this multifaceted disease.
Consuelo Castro Patient Assistance Fund
Sometimes generosity comes from unexpected sources. Born in Mexico in 1920, Ms. Consuelo Castro was only able to complete two years of her high school education. Seeking a better life, she left her home and came to Texas. In 1990, she became a naturalized citizen of the United States of America while continuing to work as a housekeeper in Houston. When she passed away in 2017, her friends and family members described her as caring, generous, hard-working, spiritual, gracious, intelligent, frugal, and deeply missed.
Ms. Castro willed her entire life savings of nearly $200,000 to the Kelsey Research Foundation (KRF) to benefit financially needy patients cared for by the Kelsey-Seybold Clinic. It was Ms. Castro’s wish that her gift would inspire others to contribute to this fund. We have named the fund in her honor, The Consuelo Castro Patient Assistance Fund. Through her generosity, KRF was recently able to assist a patient that was in desperate need of financial support to repair a medical scooter for mobility issues. The needed payments were made directly to the repair shop and the patient was able to resume use of the scooter the following week.