We are so grateful to let you know that Florida has not only survived Hurricane Irma, but that our community and team are stronger than ever. Over the course of the last two and a half weeks, dedicated corporate team members and clinicians across the HealthTrust enterprise have been coming together in an unprecedented response to back-to-back historic hurricanes.
Working around the clock, our colleagues have provided support to dozens of impacted healthcare facilities in multiple states as they prepared for Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. I am pleased to say that we have not only been able to withstand these storms, but have come through them more resilient and with a deeper appreciation for the important role healthcare professionals play in emergency response situations. These clinicians take a peek into other people’s lives during the worst possible time, when empathy, understanding, compassion and caring are paramount. In many instances these incredible caregivers answered the call to serve others despite experiencing their own personal feelings of anxiety and uncertainty.
While we certainly will have many lessons learned from this experience, the dedication shown by the entire HealthTrust organization, the thoughtful preparation, and just plain hard work have been nothing short of heroic. Through our coordinated response we were able to protect the most vulnerable of patients, provide additional staffing and keep most of our facilities running throughout the storms. All of this was accomplished while still coming to the aid of our communities when they needed it most, a truly incredible team effort.
Now we focus our attention to returning to “normal”. However, we recognize that so many of our own colleagues and communities have suffered devastating loss in these storms. It’s hard to imagine the personal sacrifice so many made to keep working in these conditions knowing that their families and homes were in harm’s way. We are pleased that the HCA Hope Fund has already helped about 1,200 fellow employees, granting them nearly $1.4 million in aid.
We never choose to face challenges such as we have seen these last few weeks, but it certainly makes us proud of the amazing resilience and steadfast dedication of the wonderful HealthTrust family. Thank you for all you do and for demonstrating every day that healthcare isn’t defined by the four walls in which it is practiced- it’s defined by the people for whom and by whom it is delivered.
If you are a registered nurse who would like to help, please click here to express your interest in joining our Disaster Response Team.
