On Wednesday, October 9, Hurricane Milton made landfall in Southwest Florida as a category three hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour. Within 24 hours, Englewood Hospital, which had transferred patients to other HCA Florida Healthcare hospitals to ensure their safety, reopened hospital and emergency room operations on Thursday, October 11, 2024. HCA Florida Englewood Hospital has approximately 416 colleagues and 91 volunteers, many of whom were affected by the hurricane. "I am incredibly proud of how our Englewood Hospital colleagues have responded in the wake of Hurricane Milton," said Joe Rudisill, chief executive officer for Englewood Hospital. "Even though many were faced with devastation, others may not yet have power in their homes, our caregivers are showing up to work with unwavering commitment to the care and improvement of human life." Twenty-four hours after the storm, Human Resources and Supply Chain teams mobilized to set up an on-site fuel station, mini-mart, ice truck and other resources to support the hospital's colleagues. Over two days, HCA Healthcare distributed more than 2,800 gallons of fuel, food, cleaning supplies, baby formula, ice and other supplies to 190 colleagues and their families. In addition to wellness checks on each colleague in the path of the storm, a representative from the Employee Assistance Program was on-site to provide one-on-one support to those dealing with the storm's aftermath. Lemon Bay High School baseball players, cheerleaders as well as Venice High School and Florida Gulf Coast University students showed up to support the relief efforts. They helped set up the distribution site, handed out ice and supplies, and visited with those affected by the storm. The baseball players volunteered to assist the efforts at a second location, HCA Florida Fawcett Hospital. Long-time hospital employee Carolyn Exelby said, "When a hurricane strikes, it's important that our hospital responds quickly to the needs of our community. We are so grateful for more than 50 community volunteers and colleagues who provided their time to support us. They showed up to help our frontline team so that we could take care of our community when they needed us the most." Additionally, the HCA Healthcare Hope Fund, a 501(c)3 public charity, stepped in to offer support and emergency funds to colleagues. The Hope Fund is run by colleagues, for colleagues. To date, the Hope Fund has surpassed $100 million in grants awarded since its founding. "Having these resources available for our HCA Florida Healthcare family lets our caregivers know that we are taking care of them and their families, so they can show up and provide outstanding care and emotional support to our patients," said Joe Rudisill, chief executive officer for Englewood Hospital. The hospital also donated 250 cases of baby formula, diapers, cleaning supplies, flats of water and other resources to the distribution center being managed by the local Rotary clubs to help with the community relief effort.For more information, please visit HCAFl.