Frances Dobynes Ford

Frances Ford has dedicated her life to enhancing and transforming healthcare in Alabama’s Black Belt region. She is a devoted public servant whose nursing training and experiences are foundational to her healthcare advocacy.

Ms. Ford is Executive Director of Sowing Seeds of Hope, a faith-based organization that strives to improve access to quality healthcare for persons living in the Black Belt. She also serves as the Healthcare Coordinator for the Perry County Commission. She works with Perry County elected officials, community leaders, and residents to identify barriers to effective healthcare and to develop and implement solutions to meet healthcare needs. Ms. Ford championed eliminating a state regulation limiting where dialysis centers may be located. She was instrumental in establishing a dialysis center in Perry County. Among other accomplishments, she insures that free healthcare screenings are offered to every child in Perry County, hosts quarterly health fairs in partnership with the Perry County Health Department, and offers monthly diabetic education and support in Perry County through a partnership with Samford University’s McWhorter School of Pharmacy.

Because of her work as a healthcare advocate, she has received multiple awards, including the Courage to Care Award and the Living Legacy Award from Samford University’s Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing. In 2016, she was inducted into the Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame.

Described as a registered nurse with a missionary’s heart, Frances Ford exemplifies the transformative impact of nurses in the communities in which they live and work.