Florida Hospital Awards $1.2 Million in Community Projects to Meet Needs of Underserved

Florida Hospital is excited to announce it has awarded $1.2 million for projects that are designed to improve the health of our community by providing important medical services to the underserved and uninsured.

Florida Hospital's Community Health Impact Council, commonly known as CHIC, announced its recipient projects today:

Community Medicine Clinic Colon Cancer Screenings: Provides flexible sigmoidoscopies and diagnostic colonoscopies with biopsies. ($153,000)

Apopka Lung Clinic - Chronic Disease Management Service Expansion: Extends services provided at clinic to include treatment of patients with additional health issues such as diabetes and hypertension; also extends operating hours. ($493,000)

Project Connect at Center for Multicultural Wellness and Prevention: Provides community-based asthma education and outreach activities such as home visits, medication management and treatment plans. ($271,904)

Florida Behavioral Health Collaborative: Provides seamless transfer of clients in need of substance-abuse or mental-health services from hospitals to Aspire Health. ($353,211)

CHIC is a subcommittee of the Florida Hospital Board of Trustees that serves as the governing body for all of Florida Hospital's community benefit activities. CHIC approves, funds and measures initiatives that improve the overall health of Central Florida, address the needs of targeted populations, and also help reduce preventable medical costs.

Since its formation in 2004, CHIC has awarded $13 million to dozens of projects that help improve the health of those in our community who need it most,” said Verbelee Nielsen-Swanson, vice president of community impact at Florida Hospital. Florida Hospital's mission isn't constrained by our hospital walls, and we know that in order to improve the health of Central Florida, we need to bring vital services to our neighbors.

Today's announcement is the latest to come from the CHIC Board, which in September awarded $1 million to three other community projects:

Hope Clinic at Adventist University of Health Sciences: Allows the Hope Clinic, staffed by the university's students, to expand physical therapy services to uninsured Central Floridians. ($564,550)

Center for Change: Educates residents in the Pine Hills and Parramore communities about hypertension, nutrition and chronic diseases. ($297,010)

Grace Medical Home: Funds a 12-week obesity study of Grace Medical patients, so researchers and clinicians can learn how to help this underserved community improve their health. ($161,424)

We see firsthand that our patients have the motivation to get well, but they lack the tools and knowledge for successful behavior change,” said Stephanie Garris, executive director of Grace Medical Home. This program will be a tremendous resource for Grace, as we provide important services to the uninsured in Central Florida. We are grateful for the support of Florida Hospital and with this funding, we can further improve the health of our community and ultimately change lives.