As Jackson Health seeks donations, former patients tell why help’s well-deserved
Patricia Fusco and and her husband knew they couldn’t have children. So when Patricia’s best friend of more than 20 years offered to be their surrogate, the couple was “over the moon.”
“I thought this was our chance, we could start a family . ... Unfortunately at her first OB appointment, she had very high blood pressure and it quickly became obvious that this is no longer a normal pregnancy,” Fusco said.
The couple encouraged their friend Katrina Wegmann to seek care at Jackson Health, Miami-Dade’s public hospital. At 23 weeks pregnant, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, their friendturned-surrogate was hospitalized and told she might have to remain at the hospital through the rest of the pregnancy, said Fusco. Doctors diagnosed her with preeclampsia, a pregnancy complication associated with high blood pressure.
And then the high-risk pregnancy got riskier: A routine ultrasound showed their son “was not growing properly and that the placenta was not really working as it should,” Fusco recalled.
“We had to make a very difficult decision as to whether or not to bring
Joseph into this world,” she said.
On May 27, 2021, at 25 weeks and five days, Joseph Patrick was born weighing 1 pound 4 ounces. The premature baby remained in the NICU for 123 days.
“Never in my life did I think we would be a miracle story,” said Fusco, who has worked at the hospital for years and has seen hundreds of “miracle stories.”
On Wednesday, Fusco and her husband shared their story during a news conference at the Lynn Rehabilitation Center, located on the campus of Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, announcing a new countywide fundraising campaign for the public hospital system.
The fundraising campaign, “One Day for Jackson,” is seeking to raise money to help support the taxpayer-funded public hospital system’s upcoming projects and initiatives, including a $300 million project to renovate and expand its ER into one of the largest in the nation.
The fundraiser is hosted by the Jackson Health Foundation, the hospital system’s philanthropic arm. Jackson, a not-forprofit health system, is a safety-net hospital, which means anyone can get care at Jackson’s facilities, regardless of their ability to pay. The hospital system gets millions in funding from Miami-Dade County taxpayers to help it operate. The Jackson Health Foundation says it raises funds “to fill the gaps of major capital projects and programmatic needs that cannot be financed by taxpayer dollars.”
“Jackson has withstood the test of time and has never ever shied away from any challenge. For nearly 106 years, Jackson has been the one safety net to the people in this community, consistently leading in innovation, medical breakthroughs and unmatched expertise,” Jackson Health CEO Carlos Migoya said at the briefing.
“Almost everyone has a Jackson story,” he added. “If you haven’t personally been cared for at Jackson, chances are you know someone who has.”
For Erika Rolle, an assistant principal for Miami-Dade Virtual Schools who also spoke at the conference, her journey began in 2006 when she was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a condition that makes it hard for the heart to deliver blood to the body and can lead to heart failure.
And she’s had a long and difficult journey. She suffered a stroke and and transient ischemic attacks, also known as “mini strokes,” and eventually had a pacemaker implanted. The battery-powered device helps regulate her heart function.
In 2011, she was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. In 2015, doctors implanted a left ventricular assist device, or LVAD, to help keep her alive while she waited for a heart transplant. On Oct. 30, 2015, Rolle was given a new heart.
“It’s a hard pill to swallow when you’re told you need a heart transplant and an LVAD,” Rolle told the Miami Herald. But Jackson’s staff, she said, made her feel like she’s part of “a family” and has supported her every step of the way.
“I’m here today because of Jackson,” said Rolle, who continues to get care through the Miami Transplant Institute.
The “One Day for Jackson” campaign officially launches April 4, though people can already donate online at OneDayfor Jackson.org, said Flavia Llizo, co-president and chief development officer for Jackson Health Foundation. Other ways to donate include texting “Jackson” to 41444. You can also support a group of local businesses, as well as the Miami Marlins and the Miami Heat, which will be donating a portion of their sales on select days to the hospital.
Established in 1991, the foundation has raised more than $250 million for Miami-Dade’s public hospital system, according to David Coulson, the foundation’s chairman. In 2023, for example, the foundation raised $56,793 on Give Miami Day, the 24-hour annual giving event hosted by the Miami Foundation to support Miami-Dade County nonprofits.
HOW TO DONATE
To learn more about the fundraiser campaign and to donate, visit OneDayForJackson.org. You’ll also find on the website a list of upcoming events and promotions in the county, including with local businesses. You’ll able to create your own fundraising page for the hospital in the near future, too.