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Message from the Executive Director |
Message from the Chair When I became a member of CCI’s Board of Directors three years ago, I knew just a little about how an organization like CCI functions or the challenges it faces. As my contribution to this year’s annual report, I’d like to focus on how CCI’s mission matters in practical terms. CCI provides primary health care, nutrition education,
and supplemental food to Montgomery County’s “medically
needy” people and families – those who are underinsured
or uninsured. Our vision is to make a reality of the proposition
that your ability to see a doctor should not depend on how much
money or insurance you have. Yet, in today’s world where health
care costs continue to rise, CCI and the other “safety net”
providers are only capable of serving less than 20 percent of the
80,000-100,000 uninsured residents of Montgomery County. Our mission has never been more relevant than
now. We must find ways to fund the care CCI delivers to the uninsured,
and must manage as efficiently as we can to deliver quality care
to others whose insurance is inadequate to cover their needs. Success
in this mission calls for equal measures of personal commitment,
hard work, professional excellence, and management skill. People seek care at CCI for a variety of reasons.
Women and children comprise the largest cohort of patients at CCI.
Some patients come from families who have been in this country for
two hundred years, while others are recent immigrants from over
40 countries who speak little or no English. Whatever their backgrounds
or situations, CCI’s patients share a common reality: because
they lack health insurance, they encounter barriers to care. These
are some of the most vulnerable people in Montgomery County, and
thousands of these people rely on CCI as their medical safety net
provider. Serving them with dignity and respect is critical to our
mission. CCI’s Board and staff take this mission seriously
and strive purposefully to fulfill it. This year marked CCI’s 29th year of service.
CCI was conceived and run in its early years by a cadre of dedicated
volunteers. As they built the organization, they recognized that
delivering quality health care is extremely complex and time consuming,
requiring extensive training, strong policies and procedures, and
a high level of consistency. Today, CCI employs more than 50 professional
staff who deliver culturally competent care in health centers located
across Montgomery County. Our hard-working and energetic staff creatively
enhances CCI’s efforts to establish and maintain quality in
every aspect of our operations. The best part of being CCI’s Chair is the
wonderful people I’ve met at our special recognition Chairman’s
Breakfasts, Solomon Health Center dedication, and myriad community
events. All of these friends are playing important roles in fulfilling
CCI’s mission. Generous individuals, companies, and service
clubs donate much-needed financial support on their own or through
several fundraising events, such as the Fannie Mae Foundation “Help
the Homeless” Walkathon, and give us sustaining goods and services.
Enthusiastic volunteers make toys or purchase books for clinic children,
and individuals and agencies collaborate with us to better serve
our patients. Without these valuable contributions, CCI’s mission
would be unachievable. CCI’s driving reality is the ever-present
need for funding. Only with adequate financial support can we continue
the daily work toward fulfilling our mission. Since joining the
Board, I have witnessed the effects of decreased funding on our
programs and on the fewer number of people, especially uninsured
adults, we can serve. To assist in ensuring CCI’s current and
future viability, the Board of Directors and I remain committed
to making CCI’s sources of funding more substantial and stable.
What I have seen and experienced during my tenure
as Chair has been a fulfilling collaboration with my outstanding
colleagues on the Board. The Directors share a genuine and true
dedication to this important agency and its work to help actively
promote good health throughout our diverse community. I want to
thank the Board members for their altruism, energy, and leadership.
My service in your company has been a pleasure. As we enter our thirtieth year, the makeup of the CCI community, the sources of revenue, the staff and Board members, the clinic locations-–all these may change. But not CCI’s mission. CCI exists to provide quality health care for people who otherwise would not receive it. That is what we will always do. |
