Sister Dede of the Little Workers of the Sacred Hearts is both a Catholic nun and a family physician and a surgeon. She treats uninsured and homeless patients at the Spanish Catholic Center and local hospitals free of charge. Six days a week, often 10 hours a day, she provides health care to those with no other place to go. "The plight of the poor is very sad," she says. "Even in a country like the US. Many of our patients don't have health insurance and often they come too late to be saved." Approximately 47 million U.S. residents currently lack health insurance.