Two Men and a Clinic

St. Vincent DePaul Community Healthcare’s Clinic Fills a Vital Gap, Thanks to Drs. Asperilla and Klein

Drs. Marianito “Mark” Asperilla and David Klein share a mission: to provide free medical care to the “poorest of the poor.” Thus, they spearheaded the establishment of St. Vincent DePaul Community Healthcare’s free clinic, which opened in Port Charlotte late last year. The two doctors serve as the clinic’s co-directors.

About 30 patients per night come to the facility on Gibralter Street, and it’s anticipated that nearly 8,000 could be treated by the time the clinic is one year old. Many of these patients, lacking the clinic’s services, would have to turn to the local hospital emergency room for care.

“We’re filling a gap,” said Klein, a Port Charlotte ophthalmologist and local philanthropist. “The emergency room is for people who are very, very ill.” He said that since the area’s hospitals — all for-profit institutions — have to bill patients no matter what their economic means, these patients would slip further into debt from “huge bills that they can’t possibly pay.”

For patients with serious conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension, that could lead to coma, stroke or even death, follow-up care is essential upon release from the hospital. With no medical resources, these patients might ignore a potentially life-threatening condition. Klein went on to paint another scenario: Should these patients lose work, their employers would suffer from reduced productivity. If these patients were to become disabled or even die, then their families might have to turn to public assistance, putting a drain on agencies that are already burdened. The clinic is a solution to these potential problems, thanks to the dedication of Asperilla and Klein.

This isn’t the first time these two doctors have teamed up to make a difference. Klein characterized their friendship and working partnership in charitable endeavors this way: “[Asperilla] builds castles in the sky; I’m the guy who tells you what it’s going to cost.” Asperilla admits that the two are “very different breeds… but we want solutions.” Despite their differences in technique and approach, they make a fine team.

When Asperilla, a Port Charlotte internist and infectious disease specialist, set up the county’s HIV charity clinic in 1994, Klein was there; the men saw more than $2 million in free medical services go to those suffering with HIV and AIDS. Both doctors donated their time, energy and services to the Care-AVan and the Clinica de Ayuda that provided medical care to the poor, mostly migrant workers. After Hurricane Charley ravaged the area, Asperilla set up a clinic at FEMA Village, and he and Klein devoted countless hours there, helping to serve some 1,500 homeless residents. Later, Asperilla would receive one of his Points of Light awards for the FEMA clinic, which went on to serve as a model nationwide and was used in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Recognizing the threat of Hepatitis C, which has a four-to-one ratio of infection over HIV and AIDS, Asperilla started the Hope Clinic for patients infected with Hepatitis C. Klein is deeply involved in that as well.

Four Napkins and a Prayer

With their backgrounds and achievements, it’s no wonder that Klein and Asperilla made the St. Vincent DePaul free clinic a reality. The clinic has come a long way from its humble beginnings. Asperilla fondly recalls his “business plan” for the clinic, which he called “four napkins and a prayer.” He explained that after years of frustration trying to get various government agencies to help set up a free clinic for the county’s poor, he was up at 2 a.m. one morning last May. Unable to sleep, he sat down and “drew the plan for the clinic on four napkins.” The next day he met with the proposed clinic’s board and presented those napkins, saying, “Here is the plan.”

The clinic was a natural progression for Asperilla, who had already set up free pharmacies with his colleague, Tom Ferrara, a PhD retiree who worked in government. The first, St. Vincent DePaul Pharmacy in Murdock, was opened in 1999. Four more were to follow, in Englewood, Punta Gorda, Arcadia and Sarasota. All operate as nonprofits and all provide free prescriptions for those who qualify. Klein was a donor and supporter of the nonprofit pharmacies, and two years ago he became a member of the board. When Asperilla began to make plans for the clinic, Klein agreed to serve as co-director.

Klein shared Asperilla’s sentiments and wholly supported the clinic’s concept, saying that for many years he saw that something had to be done for those in the county who had no insurance and didn’t qualify for Medicaid or Medicare.

Men of Conviction

After talking with them, one comes away with the impression that these men are truly brothers in spirit. Both are dedicated to providing medical care to the impoverished. Both speak with a passion of their conviction to help others, and they convey a sense of urgency when talking about their goals, as if every minute that goes by could be spent helping others.

Because of their devotion to helping others, each has received numerous awards at the local, national and international level. Both men have been recognized locally as Rotary Man of the Year, Cultural Center Man of the Year and Chamber of Commerce Pacesetters. Asperilla and Klein have each received two Presidential Call to Service awards, denoting an excess of 4,000 hours of lifetime service, meaning that they have each given more than 8,000 hours of their time to help others. They also received Humanitarian of the Year awards in 2006 from the Florida Medical Association.

Klein said that helping the poor is “the human and godly thing to do.” Asperilla said the reason he got into the field of medicine was so he could help the less fortunate. He said his commitment is based on his faith and his family, who set an example. He remembers his surgeon grandfather helping others, and that left an indelible mark on the doctor as a young man.

Both men were quick to attribute their success to their families, staff members and fellow volunteers. Both are married and have children. Klein’s wife, Stephanie, is a quality management analyst at Fawcett Memorial Hospital. He has two grown children, Richard, who is a dentist, and Robert, who is an attorney. Asperilla’s wife, Allison, is a nurse at an area school. They have three children: Spencer, 12, Angelica, 10 and Sam, 8. Recently, Spencer accompanied his father on a medical mission to Colombia, where he helped hand out school supplies. The mission, ACCESS Care Inc., was co-founded by Asperilla in 1995. It’s a nonprofit organization that sends teams of doctors to impoverished areas of Central and South America.

Volunteers and Donations

Klein referred to recent state budget cuts that might impact Medicaid and other reimbursements and benefits to the indigent. Coupled with the fact that Charlotte County has one of Florida’s highest unemployment rates, it’s easy to see how the clinic’s resources could be challenged in the future.

St. Vincent DePaul’s clinic and pharmacies have some 200 professionals — doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and others — who work for free. There are only three paid employees: Joan Kemsley, physician assistant; Jim Sidbury, executive director; and Lauren Schmidt, fundraiser and grant writer. Klein said that more nurses and doctors are always needed and that the clinic welcomes both working and retired professionals.

In addition to more doctors and nurses to volunteer their time and services, the clinic also needs financial donations. Anyone wishing to make a donation should send it to St. Vincent DePaul Community Healthcare, Inc., 21450 Gibralter Drive, Port Charlotte, FL 33952.

Those wishing to receive services at the clinic should call (941) 766-9570 for an appointment. The clinic is open Monday through Friday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.