Englewood Community Care Clinic posts impressive numbers

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Since the doors opened, 56 licensed physicians and nurses have volunteered 591 hours of their time treating the uninsured. Twenty-five non-medical volunteers gave 829 hours, acting as clerical staff and performing financial screenings.

Though only open two nights each week, the clinic provided an impressive $195,000 in health care services to more than 850 patients in its first year.

The clinic’s hours are designed to allow those who have jobs but no insurance access to the program, without having to miss work.

Clinic board member Bob Melvin, a local business owner, has been a supporter of the clinic since the beginning, and he is proud of the work that the organization is doing.

“As you can see by the numbers, the Englewood Community Care Clinic continues to "prove itself" by helping those in dire need within the community,” said Melvin. “We are in line to receive some grant money from a couple of different avenues that will help us expand our scope of services and care even further.”

Melvin and the rest of the board have a message for the people who give so generously of their time.

“We as a Board want to thank our providers (doctors, nurses and volunteers) every chance we get,” he explained. “Without them there would be no Clinic. Thank you! In particular, thank you Dr. Tom Ervin for your dedication. My hope is your service will inspire Boca Grande health care providers to assist the all-volunteer Englewood Community Care Clinic in any way possible going forward!”

The clinic is important to Boca Grande, with approximately 10% of the patients seen there either living or working on the island.

“Rest assured, if you choose to contribute to our tax deductible 501(c)3 clinic your donation goes to a very worthy, needed and much appreciated cause,” continued Melvin.

“The Englewood Community Care Clinic is truly a grassroots community effort to meet health care needs during these tough economic times,” said Board President Dr. Raymond James, D.O. “We have helped many patients with serious medical conditions and even saved a few lives. Our volunteers have found their experiences to be rewarding and being able to quantify the value of the services provided over the past 12 months with such an impressive dollar figure speaks volumes about the impact our clinic is having in meeting our mission of providing free medical services to the uninsured and working poor in the Englewood area. We are grateful to the community for its support.”

Englewood Community Care Clinic, Inc. is a 501(c)3 charitable organization and relies on financial contributions from donors to continue its work. The clinic is open on Monday and Thursday evenings at 5 p.m. and is located at 6868 San Casa Drive in Englewood. Additional volunteer medical providers with active Florida licenses are needed. For more information go to englewoodclinic.org or call (941) 681-3765.