Miami, Florida – Community Health of South Florida, Inc. (CHI) achieved gold status as a “Health Center Quality Leader,” a prestigious national award given by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). CHI received this award in recognition of ranking among the top 10% of health centers for best overall clinical performance.

“This award shows that we are making progress in reducing health disparities,” said Brodes H. Hartley Jr., President/CEO at CHI. “Our team managed to exceed national quality benchmarks and achieved top tier results providing greater access to high-quality care and we continue to address critical issues such as improvements in cancer reduction and the increasing need for behavioral health services in our community.”

HRSA awarded CHI based on a comparison of CHI’s clinical quality measures to more than 1,400 other health centers throughout the United States.

HRSA recognized CHI as one of the highest performing health centers nationwide linked to significant quality improvements from the previous years. CHI increased access to comprehensive care and made strides in pediatric immunizations, cervical cancer screening and coronary artery disease prevention.

Since 1971, CHI has been a beacon of hope providing access to high quality healthcare for all regardless of insurance status, income level or background. The non-profit federally qualified health center offers comprehensive healthcare services including primary care, pediatrics, OB/GYN, dental, urgent care, behavioral health, vision, radiology, pharmacy, transportation and more. CHI has 11 health centers and 35 school-based sites. CHI is a recipient of the Florida Governor’s Sterling Award. It is accredited by the Joint Commission and is also designated as a patient centered medical home by the National Committee for Quality Assurance. CHI is also designated as a behavioral health medical home. In addition, CHI is home to the Brodes H. Hartley Jr., Teaching Health Center, providing residency training for the next generation of doctors in the specialties of Family medicine and Psychiatry. CHI recently broke ground on the first Children’s Crisis Center in southern Miami-Dade County this month. It will service kids with severe behavioral health problems from Monroe and Miami-Dade Counties.

On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, the Iota Pi Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated joined the Miami-Dade National Pan-Hellenic Council to distribute Christmas gifts to the entire student body of Florida City Elementary School. The Miami-Dade National Pan-Hellenic Council hosts an annual toy collection drive to provide Christmas gifts to children who reside in low income communities.

The Council’s holiday gift market included books, action figures, balls, dolls, remote control vehicles, Legos and electronic learning devices for primary school age children. The students were allowed to select their personal gifts to take home. In total, over 400 toys were collected by NPHC local affiliate organizations (Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority) and distributed at the school site. A surplus of toys which included featured hot items - two bicycles and a drone - were allocated to the school administration to serve as achievement prizes to inspire and reward student performance during the remainder of the school year.

New Beginnings International, Inc. seeks after-school teachers/tutors to provide academic support to at-risk youth in the Homestead/Florida City area from 2-6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Candidates must have experience working with youth, preferably certified. For more information, call (305) 254-3403 or email [email protected]. To download an application, click here.