To Your Health
100 years of care and solutions at Lee Memorial
For 100 years, Lee Memorial Health System, soon to be called Lee Health, has been devoted to caring for our community, and as Southwest Florida grows, so do the health care needs of those entrusted to our care. In addition to caring for more than 1 million patients every year, Lee Memorial Health System, or LMHS, is continually assessing and proactively addressing the region’s most compelling health issues.
Health care throughout our country is in a significant state of change and transition―our challenge at LMHS is to continue to enhance our culture of outstanding quality of care to all we serve, while recognizing our financial and political realities.
LMHS has identified five priorities that focus on enhancing the community’s health. However, in order to do so, we must focus on philanthropic investment in our health. Philanthropy and generosity live in a world of clarity and impact―clarity in mission and understanding the impact of philanthropic investment in our community. I cannot think of a more impactful mission than investing in the health and wellness of Southwest Florida.
To this end, LMHS and LMHS Foundation over the next five years will focus on raising awareness and philanthropic support in these strategic areas:
Bonita and Estero Life Village
This area is experiencing tremendous growth, and the new medical village will have a 24/7 freestanding emergency room, a surgery center, specialty- and primary-care physicians, wellness and rehabilitative programs.
Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida
When America’s newest children’s hospital opens in 2017, it will quickly fill with our youngest, most vulnerable patients. Envision children being pulled in little red wagons between procedures and their hospital rooms. The funding needs a shift from bricks and mortar to an annual philanthropic support. We call it the “Little Red Wagon Campaign,” because everything we do and every dollar raised and spent is for our children and for generations to come.
Health and Wellness
Through programs such as Healthy Lee and our partnerships with physicians groups, local schools, social-service organizations and our varied neighborhoods, we are taking a grass-roots approach to educate and initiate healthy living programs to areas that may have been circumvented in the past.
Regional Cancer Center (RCC)
The RCC each year since 2008 has experienced double-digit growth. Our five-year success rate for cancers diagnosed and managed exceeds national averages, yet is a great “untold” success story. LMHS will begin a multimillion-dollar expansion of the RCC, including a 24,000-square-foot addition to the existing health center on Colonial Boulevard near I-75 in Fort Myers.
The Shipley Center for Cardiothoracic Surgery Innovation, Education & Research
Heart disease continues to be the leading cause of death in the U.S. To address the management and care of heart and lung diseases, LMHS in 2015 created the Shipley Center. By using a formalized program to improve a patient’s health before surgery, outcomes vastly improved. We are at the forefront of developing techniques to significantly improve patient health and vitality.
Over the next year, you’ll be hearing more about these priorities and learning how each one impacts Southwest Florida; and we’ll present many different ways to support our region’s health. Many people have already given for their own unique reasons, or as we label it “your why.” We want to know your “why” and do all we can to inspire community philanthropy that enhances the overall health of the Southwest Floridians we serve.