About the Health & Wellness Coalition

The Southwest Florida Health and Wellness Coalition unites partners to improve access to and quality of care across the region. Guided by key indicators, the Coalition aligns efforts to address the most pressing health challenges and drive measurable impact. Through collaboration and shared accountability, it advances sustainable, system-level improvements in community health.

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Our Purpose

Our Purpose

The Health & Wellness Coalition aligns cross-sector partners around shared, system-level solutions that improve quality of life across Southwest Florida. Our purpose is not to duplicate existing efforts, but to serve as a convener that advances measurable change in access and quality of care. Guided by regional alignment, we are focused on three priorities: strengthening behavioral health workforce capacity and access, improving maternal health outcomes with an emphasis on first trimester prenatal care, and expanding access to care for uninsured adults under age 65. Through coordinated action, we aim to shift systems, not just programs to ensure access and high-quality care for all residents.

Data-Informed Approach

Our work is grounded in local, regional, and state-level data, including County Health Rankings, Florida Department of Health indicators, hospital and health system data, and community health needs assessments. We prioritize metrics that reflect both access and quality, such as provider-to-population ratios, early prenatal care utilization, and uninsured rates among working-age adults. By aligning partners around shared baseline data and measurable targets, we ensure that strategies are responsive to documented gaps and that progress can be tracked transparently over time. Data is not just reviewed, it drives decision-making, investment strategy, and accountability.

Collaborative Effort Across Sectors

The Coalition convenes leaders from hospital systems, federally qualified health centers, behavioral health providers, county health departments, philanthropy, nonprofits, and community-based organizations across five counties. We operate as a neutral table where CEOs, clinical leaders, funders, and frontline partners align around shared priorities and coordinated action. Through structured work groups, leadership convenings, and capacity-building initiatives, we move from conversation to implementation. Our model emphasizes shared ownership, cross-sector accountability, and sustainable change, recognizing that improving access and quality of care requires collaboration far beyond any single organization.

Our Region

Significant differences in health outcomes and access to care exist across the counties in our region. Rural counties face some of the greatest challenges, including limited provider availability, higher uninsured rates, and fewer local resources, while more urban counties often have stronger health care infrastructure but still experience gaps in access. These variations contribute to unequal health outcomes and highlight the need for coordinated region-wide solutions that account for local conditions.

Our Roots

The Southwest Florida Health & Wellness Coalition launched on May 1, 2023, in response to a regional call for solutions to our most pressing social challenges. Building on the collective impact model established by FutureMakers, the Coalition was formed with the understanding that no single organization can solve complex health issues alone.

As part of a continual improvement process, the Coalition realigned its work in January 2026 to focus on the top priorities identified by regional health leaders for collective action: strengthening the behavioral health workforce, improving access to care for uninsured and underinsured adults under age 65, and increasing access to prenatal care in the first trimester. This refined focus strengthens our shared commitment to advancing system-level change and improving quality of life across Southwest Florida.

Our Team

Maureen Chase

Partnership Manager

Joey Sylla

Coalition Coordinator

Coalition Values

The Southwest Florida Health & Wellness Coalition is grounded in the belief that improving access and quality health care is a shared responsibility across sectors and communities. We are committed to advancing system-level change by aligning partners around data-driven priorities, measurable outcomes, and a shared vision for regional impact.

Guided by clearly defined indicators, we focus our efforts on the most pressing health challenges facing Southwest Florida to ensure strategies, investments, and actions are coordinated and results-oriented.

We foster a culture of collaboration, trust, and continuous learning by bringing together diverse partners to test solutions, evaluate impact, and scale what works. Through low-risk, high-trust, rapid-cycle learning, we accelerate progress while remaining adaptable to emerging needs and opportunities, ultimately driving sustainable improvements that strengthen the health and well-being of all residents across Southwest Florida.