As a lifelong St. Louis resident, a proud product of North St. Louis, and a healthcare leader, my commitment to this community is both personal and professional. I have lived the history that has shaped our neighborhoods and have dedicated my career to improving the health of the people who call St. Louis home. I have seen our city endure hospital closures, a global pandemic, devastating tornadoes, rising violence, and persistent health disparities that continue to affect many Black communities. 

Through it all, our local community health centers have remained. 

Healthcare is more than providing medical services. It is understanding a community’s history, culture, and challenges. It is earning trust over time. That is why community engagement and cultural competence are not optional. They are essential. 

For many Black residents of St. Louis, healthcare cannot be separated from history. The closing of Homer G. Phillips Hospital, a nationally recognized institution that represented far more than healthcare, was a profound loss for North St. Louis. The closure remains a defining event which shaped mistrust in the healthcare system, lack of access to care, missed economic opportunities, and the absence of health for generations of Black families. 

Nor can healthcare leaders ignore the lasting effects of segregation, poverty, food insecurity, violence, transportation barriers, environmental inequities, and decades of disinvestment that continue to shape health outcomes across our city. These realities cannot be understood from data alone. They require listening to residents, partnering with neighborhood organizations, respecting the history of the community, and demonstrating cultural competence. 

As a native St. Louisan, dedicated to improving health outcomes for residents, I welcome competition if it is done in partnership and in the best interest of the community. Organizations that are willing to invest in St. Louis, hire locally, collaborate with existing providers, demonstrate cultural competence, and make a long-term commitment to our neighborhoods are the organizations needed to continue help St. Louis thrive.   

What I do not welcome are efforts that appear to treat vulnerable communities as opportunities for expansion without first earning the trust of the people who live there. When organizations seek to establish a presence without meaningful community engagement, without understanding the history of the neighborhoods they hope to serve, and without collaborating with those already doing the work, those efforts can reasonably be viewed as predatory rather than community driven. 

When community members experienced a disruption in health services this year, St. Louis community health centers stepped forward. They expanded services, increased outreach, strengthened partnerships, and ensured patients continued to receive care because the community came first. That is what community commitment looks like. 

The future of healthcare in St. Louis should be built on partnership, not competition for service areas. Organizations that truly want to serve our city should begin by listening to residents, engaging community leaders, and strengthening the healthcare system that already exists. 

St. Louis deserves healthcare organizations that understand our history, respect our culture, earn our trust, and remain committed to our community for the long term. Our residents are not a market to capture. They are our neighbors. They deserve healthcare organizations that put people before expansion, partnership before competition, and community before opportunity.