Help our Community Clinic

I joined the board of the St Vincent DePaul Community Pharmacy about 4 years ago. That entity has since morphed into St Vincent DePaul Community Healthcare Inc., now doing business as The Virginia B. Andes Volunteer Community Clinic. I served on the board beginning in 2006 and became treasurer of the pharmacy in 2007. That year the board decided to expand the mission from providing life-saving prescription drugs to also providing urgent and episodic care to the working poor and uninsured in Charlotte County. Charlotte County is ranked 15th among 67 counties in Florida with residents without healthcare. We also have one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.

The original idea for the clinic was to relieve our congested hospital emergency rooms, which are required by law to treat anyone with illness or injury, whether they can pay or not. Emergency room costs are estimated to be six times more than treatment in a physicians’ office. Without our clinic, the emergency room was the only after hours option to access heath care for the poor.
I was diagnosed with lung cancer in October 2007, at about the time the board decided to go forward with opening the clinic. Everything seemed to miraculously come together. We were able to get an ideal location near Fawcett and Peace River Hospital on county land at the Family Services Center. All three hospitals -- Fawcett, Peace River and Charlotte Regional -- provided us with seed money to bring in and set up a modular clinic on the site. As treasurer, I was responsible for funding this undertaking. My thought had always been that if the area hospitals and the community at large fully supported the effort, we could make it work.

In fact the clinic has been a win-win for everyone involved. Since opening in February of 2007, we have seen more than 9.000 patients and have dispensed thousands of prescription drugs to those in need. Treating patients (for high blood pressure, flu, diabetes, etc) who might otherwise go untreated is helping to keep them out of the hospital with more serious disease (heart attack, stroke, pneumonia). I believe what we are doing at the clinic is what Christ intended for us to do on earth, and may be one reason God is letting me live. He wants me to help keep His good work going.

In 2008 I became President of the clinic and, under the leadership of Suzanne Roberts, our executive director, we have found our feet and we are moving forward with wide ranging health services. Today we have more than 180 volunteers, including physicians, nurses, and pharmacists who provide their time and expertise to help our patients. We would be nowhere without them.

In the first year of operation, Virginia B Andes, a long time community volunteer, provided the clinic with vitally needed operating dollars. Without her support we might have had to close our doors for lack of funding. Despite the generous funding we receive from the area hospitals, the county government and United Way, operating a free clinic is expensive. Our bare bones budget this year, which is based on known sources of income, is roughly $300,000. That amount allows us to operate at a subsistence level, but we are severely constrained on what we are able to do. We have set a goal to raise another $100,000 in operating dollars from the community this year.

Virginia Andres has generously offered to provide a match to any individual who makes a pledge or donation of $1000 or more, up to $50,000 in total. We have already raised $25,000 toward our goal. We are appealing to others with the wherewithal in our community to step up with an annual donation. If you would like to become a Pacesetter and make a truly remarkable difference, contact me or visit our clinic website at www.volunteercare.org to make donation to our cause.