Volunteers in Medicine provides medical services to Northeast Florida’s working uninsured families. But what would happen if the organization’s only EKG machine stopped working?
To help ensure the organization’s services could continue in the face of such an event, Volunteers in Medicine contacted longtime community partner First Tennessee Bank, which provided the funds to help purchase a new EKG machine.
“First Tennessee’s donation was truly a lifesaver,” said Dr. Victoria Findley, medical director of Volunteers in Medicine. “The EKG machine plays a critical role in the treatment and diagnosis of our patients because every new patient we see over the age of 50 is given an EKG test to establish a baseline and to screen for cardiac disease.”
The EKG machine is also used to detect problems in patients suffering from high blood pressure, Findley noted.
“In cases where patients complain of chest pains,” she said, “we are able to administer an EKG that provides our doctors, nurse practitioners and specialists with the information they need to make an accurate diagnosis.”
First Tennessee executives emphasized the bank’s commitment to helping improve life for Jacksonville residents.
“For more than 150 years, we have strengthened communities by collaborating with nonprofit, community development and civic partners to meet community needs, encourage growth and support sustainability,” said Cheryl Barnett, senior vice president of First Tennessee Bank. “We are proud to partner with Volunteers in Medicine to help provide for an EKG machine that will benefit people in our community.”
To qualify for services at Volunteers in Medicine, patients must work at least 20 hours per week and earn an annual income between $13,000 and 250 percent of federal poverty guidelines ($29,500 for a single household).
“We are a fully integrated healthcare facility specializing in chronic disease management, and an EKG machine is a mandatory tool in our diagnosis and treatment of our patients,” said Mary Pat Corrigan, CEO of Volunteers in Medicine. “More importantly, without an EKG machine, our practitioners would have to refer our patients to our hospital emergency rooms for this very basic, but critical procedure.”
