Isla Community Health signs regional healthcare pact with Guam nonprofit

Isla Community Health Center signed a memorandum of agreement with Guam-based Todu Guam Foundation on July 13 during the foundation's Healthcare Community Meet & Greet at the Hyatt Regency Guam in Tamuning, formalizing a regional partnership aimed at expanding healthcare access, strengthening the healthcare workforce, improving specialty care and coordinating disaster response and recovery efforts across the Mariana Islands.

The agreement establishes what both organizations call the Todu-Isla Marianas Collaboration, creating a framework for cooperation between the two nonprofit healthcare providers.

Isla Community Health chief executive officer Dr. Cindy Hoepner, who traveled from Saipan for the signing, said the agreement formalizes a partnership that has already been developing over the past year.

"Today is more than a signing of an agreement. It is a celebration of a relationship that began with a simple conversation nearly a year ago."

Hoepner said both organizations quickly realized they shared common goals despite serving different island communities.

"We shared the same hopes, the same dreams, and the same commitment to building healthier communities."

She noted that the two organizations had already been working together before signing the agreement.

"Long before this agreement was signed, we were already partnering."

According to Hoepner, the collaboration will focus on improving healthcare delivery throughout Guam and the Commonwealth.

"Today, we formally establish the Todu Isla Marianas Collaboration, bringing together Todu Guam Foundation and Isla Community Health in a shared commitment to strengthen healthcare delivery, expand specialty care, develop our workforce, and improve outcomes across Guam and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands."

She said the partnership recognizes the common challenges faced by remote island communities.

"Living and serving in this part of the world means we understand the realities of isolation and limited resources."

"We know that no single organization can solve every challenge alone."

Hoepner said the agreement is intended to create a stronger regional healthcare network.

"Together, we are fostering a stronger regional healthcare network that will benefit not only today's patients, but future generations throughout the Marianas."

She added that the organizations hope the agreement will leave a lasting legacy beyond the ceremonial signing.

"May today's signing not be remembered simply as a day we executed an agreement, but as a day two neighboring islands chose to invest in one another."

Earlier in the ceremony, Dennis Rodriguez Jr., executive director of Todu Guam Foundation, said the memorandum represents much more than a signed document.

"This collaboration represents far more than a signed agreement."

Rodriguez Jr. said the organizations will work together to expand healthcare access, strengthen workforce development, collaborate on education and outreach, and improve the health and well-being of residents in Guam and the CNMI.

He said the recent typhoons affecting the Mariana Islands highlighted the importance of the partnership.

"Through this collaboration, Todu Guam Foundation and Isla Community Health Center are establishing a framework to support one another, not only during times of growth, but also during times of disaster response and recovery."

Rodriguez Jr. said sharing knowledge, coordinating resources and standing together would strengthen both organizations and, most importantly, the communities they serve.

In a news release issued after the event, Lena Calvo-Rodriguez, president and chief executive officer of Todu Guam Foundation, said the agreement is intended to strengthen healthcare collaboration throughout the region.

"This partnership represents more than the beginning of a collaboration—it is a promise that our island communities will be stronger when we stand together."

She added that by working together across Guam and the CNMI, the organizations can strengthen the healthcare workforce, expand opportunities for collaboration and improve patient care, particularly during emergencies.

According to the news release, the memorandum covers collaboration in healthcare access, workforce development, professional education and training, community outreach, regional collaboration, and mutual support during disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. Isla Community Health is a federally qualified health center serving Saipan and Tinian, while Todu Guam Foundation is a Guam-based nonprofit healthcare organization.