Page 7 - SFHN Dec 2020

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A message from our President

Have a Happy and Safe Holiday Season!

It hardly seems possible. We can almost see all of 2020 in our rearview mirror! Holidays” I do so in the hopes that you will listen to
And it can’t be too soon. the experts and limit group sizes and visitations. Stay
We are at that part of the year where we celebrate holidays that evoke the mean- safe to 2021.
ing of family. Love, togetherness and a time of peace and fellowship, you know … The SFHHA also has, in a sense, a celebration
family. every year. Come the first week in December our his-
Our new world order changed in the first quarter of this year. As humans living tory has dictated that we have a meeting of “mem-
on this fragile planet, it isn’t the first time that a pandemic has swept the globe. The bers” to conduct the business of the Association. Jaime Caldwell
“Spanish” flu pandemic was, quite simply, the single worst disease episode in mod- Historically, that has included a sit-down dinner at a
ern world history. In the space of eighteen months in 1918-1919, its three waves wonderful location where fellowship reigned supreme. Well, this year it will be
killed some 50 million people around the globe, or some 3 to 4 percent of the slightly different. We will be holding a virtual annual meeting on December 10th
world’s population.” (information can be found on our website www.sfhha.com).
While COVID-19 has not claimed either as many cases or deaths (about 1.4 mil- The meeting will open with a presentation on what the Biden healthcare agenda
lion deaths at this writing, a little over 2 percent of those who are diagnosed), we might look like, we will then have a session on the COVID-19 vaccines, and finally,
can look to the advances in science as the reason for the reduced morbidity and a panel discussion of top hospital administrators talking about 2021 and beyond
mortality. Regardless, COVID-19 is still a major menace and the history books have against the backdrop of COVID-19.
not yet recorded its scorecard. The number of infections is up, number of deaths is This is promising to be a great program that will start at 8:30 a.m. on December
up, and there are more and more articles talking about the lasting morbidity caused 10th and be over right after lunch. In addition, there will be networking sessions
by COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control has recommended that large family where you can talk with members and friends of our Board of Directors and there
events celebrating both major holidays and significant family milestones be limited. will be prizes.
This virus is insidious, and some unwary victims have no idea they are infected. This is my last article for 2020 and I want to thank you very much for supporting
Available screening will not pick up their disease course and the infection will be the South Florida Hospital & Healthcare Association and also the South Florida
shared freely amongst all the gathered family and friends; young and old. With the Hospital News & Healthcare Report that so generously supports the mission of the
number of cases on the rise, this is not the time to have such events. Vaccines are SFHHA. Charles and Carol Felix, “THANK YOU!”
on the way but will not have much impact in 2020. While I will wish you “Happy Please, be safe and I will see you (literally) in the third quarter of 2021!

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