When Healthcare Falls Short: A Social Worker’s Perspective on Care Coordination, Accountability, and The Need for Change
For more than a decade, I have worked within healthcare systems before becoming a clinical social worker. Throughout my career, I have supported patients facing mental health challenges, chronic illnesses, social service needs, dual diagnoses, and life-altering medical events. I understand the realities healthcare professionals face every day, including staffing shortages, increasing patient volumes, insurance requirements, and administrative burdens. I also understand what q
I Found Hope at This Summit: Advocate Reflects on 2026 Florida Voices for Health Summit
For eleven years, I’ve stood at the intersection of crisis and advocacy, working alongside people experiencing homelessness. Most days, I navigate crisis, but I’m equally driven to push for systems-level change. My work spans food justice and food access, and I also lead community engagement at a free clinic for uninsured and underinsured people. Having experienced barriers in healthcare access, poverty, and homelessness myself, I know firsthand the realities our communities
I’m Too Rich for Medicaid, Too Poor to Pay My Bills
Kathy grew up in New England and spent most of her life working hard and building stability. She worked for over 20 years at a payroll service company providing tech support for payroll software used by McDonald’s restaurants. “When I graduated, I got a really good job at a payroll service, and I was there for 21 years.” Her steady job allowed her to become a homeowner at a young age: “I had my first house at age 26. I had multiple cars. I had a motorcycle and two antique
Eighty-Eight Hours: A New Approach to Life
By Kam S. I have been on Dialysis now since July 2021. Several of my friends keep asking me how I am coping with the new normal with an almost sympathetic tone. I thought about it and thought some more and with over three months of practical experience and some introspection I decided to put my thoughts on paper. So here I go: - Is it the best thing that has happened to me?...Absolutely not! - Is it easily manageable?... Positively yes! It is a gift of life. Numbers always ma
I've Worked Hard All My Life, but I'm Still Drowning in Medical Debt
At 59 years old, A.J. describes herself as “a single woman with strong family ties, living in Florida and struggling to stay afloat...
I Spent My College Years Without Healthcare. Now I'm Speaking Out to Improve the System
O.F. is a young dietitian in Davie, FL. Her difficulties receiving healthcare began in 2001 with the unexpected passing of her father....
