From left to right: Terry Prather, Chairman of the Board, Dr. Phillips Charities, Jeff Heyward, President & CEO, Heart of Florida United Way, David Uth, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church of Orlando, Mike Aitcheson, Chairman of the Board, Grace Medical Home, Oren Henry, Director of Housing and Community Development, City of Orlando, and Don Brown, Bea for Kids.
Grace Medical Home celebrated a significant step in expanding whole-person care initiatives for the uninsured by kicking-off construction on Grace Wellness Home. Community partners, dedicated board, staff and volunteers joined us to recognize and thank our community partners who invested a collective $1,126,500 to purchase, renovate, staff and furnish Grace Wellness Home.
In addition to addressing patients’ physical, emotional, social and spiritual health, Grace will focus on individualized plans to improve wellness. Educating and equipping patients with additional wellness tools and developing new skills will further reduce stress, improve health outcomes and strengthen patients’ resilience.
Expanding these much-needed services would not have been possible without the significant support from six community partners: The City of Orlando, Dr. Phillips Charities, Heart of Florida United Way, Florida Blue Foundation, First Baptist Church of Orlando and Bea For Kids. To kick-off construction, attendees left encouraging notes, prayers, and signatures on a beam that will be installed in the renovated house.
“Mental health services have been a vital part of Grace’s integrated, whole-person care since 2014,” said Mike Aitcheson, Chair of Grace’s Board of Directors. “We have seen a 125% increase in counseling needs at Grace Since 2019. Mental health and well-being are more important now than ever before.”
In 2022:
· There were 1,710 mental health encounters at Grace.
· 21% of all Grace patients received mental health services.
· 1 in 3 adult patients showed symptoms of possible depression.
· the average counseling patient had 7.6 counseling visits.
Expanding these much-needed services would not have been possible without the significant support from six community partners: The City of Orlando, Dr. Phillips Charities, Heart of Florida United Way, Florida Blue Foundation, First Baptist Church of Orlando and Bea For Kids. To kick-off construction, partners, Board members, staff and volunteers left encouraging notes, prayers, and signatures on a beam that will be installed in the renovated house.
Following comments by the community partners, the construction kick-off ceremony ended with a tour of the house and attandees signing a beam that will be installed in the renovated house.
“The City of Orlando is committed to ensuring that every person who lives in Orlando feels equally valued and has equal access to opportunities – including quality healthcare and mental health services," said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. "We are proud to invest in the growth of the Grace Wellness Home as it's an example of the power of collaboration and compassion and helps to further our efforts to reduce the stigma of receiving mental health services and empower members of our community to be able to identify those who might be struggling and offer support."
“It’s an honor for Dr. Philips Charities to be a part of this project,” said Terry Prather, Chairman of the Board of Dr. Phillips Charities. “After the presentation (in our office), every board member agreed. This is a no-brainer. Grace Medical Home is just such an important part of the fabric in this community. I think the word that stands out is ‘home.’ Everyone that walks into that building feels like they are at home. They are treated with dignity and honor and they get great service.”
“We are proud to invest $250,000 in Grace Medical Home which we know is a crucial organization in this community providing life-changing care to those who can’t afford and don’t have access to health insurance,” said Jeff Hayward, President & CEO, Heart of Florida United Way. “This includes the population we refer to as ALICE – Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed -- working every day, sometimes two jobs, and they still can’t afford their basic needs, much less a trip to the emergency room.”
“The word ‘saved’ in the New Testament is the Greek word ‘sozo,’” shared David, Senior Pastor, of First Baptist Church of Orlando. “It actually means ‘wholeness.’ A lot of times we just focus on the spiritual aspect. Oh, it’s much more than that. It’s wholeness and that‘s what Jesus meant when he said, ‘I came to seek and save those who are lost.’ And I just feel like the wholeness element we all have a part to play in it. Yes, we address the spiritual needs, but we don’t stop there. How can we address the physical needs? How can we address the mental and social needs? And it is so good to have partners like Grace Medical that help us do that.”
“Nothing could make us happier than to live out our objective of providing for the physical health, the mental health, and the wellbeing of children,” said Don Brown with Bea for Kids. “And the Grace Wellness Home is a perfect place to do that.”
