Patient care gains Seminole support

We Care Manatee, a nonprofit healthcare provider for low-income and uninsured Manatee County residents, has entered into a three-year agreement with Florida State University to partner in servicing patients, while training student nurse practitioners.

We Care Manatee, located near Manatee Memorial Hospital, will be a clinical training facility site for the doctor of nursing practice family nurse practitioner program. The affiliation will help We Care provide a cost-effective, private-sector solution to Manatee County’s uninsured health care needs, while providing nursing students with valuable real-time clinical experiences within a community-based clinic.     

College of nursing faculty will be responsible for the instruction of the nurses in the program who are assigned to We Care. The clinical duties of participating nurses enrolled in the program will be designed to meet the needs of We Care’s patient population.  

“We are delighted at the prospect of this mutually beneficial partnership,” said Victoria Kasdan, We Care Manatee executive director. 

Judith McFetridge-Durdle, dean of the College of Nursing, is equally excited about the three-year affiliation agreement with We Care Manatee, Inc. 

“This agreement will allow the college to not only provide our DNP students with real world clinical experiences in their local community, but also make a difference by providing timely quality of care to the community’s underserved population,” she said.

We Care offers four unique programs to support eligible uninsured, low-income residents of the Manatee County community. We Care’s specialty physician referral program provides access to more than 80 physician specialists who donate their time and services. The pharmaceutical assistance program offers certain prescription medications with refills at no cost. We Care’s breast health and wellness offering provides preventive and diagnostic mammograms, as well as breast ultrasound, MRI and surgical consultation at no charge. We Care also operates a free primary care clinic for diagnosing and managing acute and chronic health care needs.  

For more information about We Care, visit wecaremanatee.org.