Small-town island doctor builds trust, care in his clinic
In the past few years, Daniel Hanley, M.D., has gone a long distance to earn the trust of Pine Islanders. He said he does recognize that people like him, but says it’s just because he makes an effort to treat people the way he would want to be treated himself.
“We’re all just doing the best that we can. We are all struggling to survive and trying to build a better future for ourselves,” Hanley said.
Although he admits there was no specific point in time where he realized it, he said he believes people like that he is honest with them and he feels that is the best way to build a community.
“The first time I came out here — I don’t know how to describe it. It just felt right to me,” Hanley said.
Everything helped him on his way to becoming the small town island family doctor, however, he credits his adoration of Pine Island with the almost complete lack of tourist attractions out here. While he said he does appreciate local nature and conservation and, in fact, all that is Pine Island, he said the moment he and his wife came out to meet the island, they fell in love with her.
“There was no point where we said, we are the island doctors. We just were,” Hanley said.
When he first arrived, he said, many of his patients compared him with the previously popular, Dr. Mauney, who died in 2017.
“He was outgoing, a little unique and willing to go to patients homes. From what I can tell, he definitely sounds like he would have been right up my alley. I think we would have had a good time together,” Hanley said.
The comparison is understandable, he said, as it seems both of them had the same goals of helping people to live the best life they can live. On the island, Hanley has made a name for himself as someone who would go to almost any length to make sure his patients are O.K. and getting what thy need.
“I love this island. I think the island represents both what we can be, in general, and the reasons why we want to achieve what we achieve. I think people here, in many ways, recognize how fortunate we are. Many people are living really good lives without too much medication,” Hanley said.
Crediting his team with much of the work of the Ancuram Clinic seems to be the way Hanley works best and defines his community.
“At the end of the day, we want to be good neighbors to each other. We want to clinging to each other, we want to help each other get through the rough patches. I don’t want to say we expect it from other people, but it’s kind of a reciprocal action that we hope we create in the future and it does happen. I see that,” Hanley said.
Ancuram Clinic is at 10700 Stringfellow Road, Unit 50, Bokeelia. Call (833) 742-6276.