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We recently marked the 14th anniversary of the founding of Catholic Health East. It was on January 8, 1998 that three health systems – Eastern Mercy Health System, Sisters of Providence Health System, and the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany Health System – officially came together to combine their strengths, their charisms, and their resources. They came together because health care was at a crossroads. Increased government regulations, growing competition, reimbursement cuts, increasing managed care presence, dramatic advances in technology and pharmaceuticals, and the growing shift to outpatient and home care dominated the health care landscape. Some things never change! It was clear to our Sponsors that Catholic hospitals needed to come together as never before to face the challenges of the future. How could religious health care providers continue to meet their mission of caring for the poor and the underserved of our society while faced with fewer resources, shrinking margins, and greater competition? Sr. Mary Caritas Geary, a current member of Hope Ministries who has served in many leadership roles at CHE and Sisters of Providence, recalled some of those early discussions among the congregations. She said “We had always been committed to caring in a quality manner for people who are poor, but our resources were very stretched. The American health care system was teetering on the brink of disaster. Just putting on “band-aids” was not going to fix this broken system. It was up to us to preserve this ministry.” CHE owes its very existence to the courage and vision of those women religious whose congregations fortuitously decided 14 years ago that “Together, We Are So Much More.” Just as their forebears from Italy and Ireland and France and Canada had done for more than one hundred years, they took the risks that their faith demanded of them. Whether it was a school to build, a church to minister to, or patients to treat, the sisters of our congregations found ways to meet ever-changing community needs. Likewise, our founding sisters rode the winds of change in 1998 to build one of the largest health systems in the nation. Here we are…in the year 2012. And the world has never stopped changing, has it? As electronic health records and health care reform and breakthrough technologies continue to revolutionize our ministry, we are fortunate to have one constant in our lives…our Mission and Core Values. Reverence for each person. Community. Justice. Commitment to those who are poor. Stewardship. Integrity. And Courage. These are the seven core values espoused by our founders, and they are as important and meaningful today as they have ever been. When thinking about our heritage, the value of “courage” stands out for me. What courage it must have taken to come to this country in the 19th century and devote your life to those whom society had left behind: the poor and marginalized, the orphans and the homeless, the frail and the elderly, the sick and the dying. Our Sisters took many risks in those early days. And their heritage of courage defines us to this day. It is reflected in the stories we heard at our January 10th Heritage Day celebration from our two guest speakers: Jake Bell, president and CEO of Mercy medical in Daphne, Alabama, and Sr. Therese O’Rourke, president of Servants, Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the sponsors of Maxis Health System in Carbondale, Pennsylvania. Both Mercy Medical and Maxis are in the midst of great change. Mercy Medical, an institution-based skilled nursing, residential and assisted living ministry, is shifting its mission to focus entirely on community and home-based care. And the IHM Sisters, who have sponsored hospitals in Carbondale, Pa. for over 86 years, have agreed to close Marian Community Hospital next month because the community can no longer support an inpatient care facility. Both Jake and Sr. Therese eloquently and emotionally shared their powerful yet poignant stories. Stories about changing with the times, changing in response to evolving needs…and having the courage to let go and begin anew. “When God calls, we are not promised an easy road. Often, God does not call us to the success for which we hope. God calls us to fidelity, to trust and to promise- keeping,” said Sr. Therese. “CHE made it possible for us to extend our fidelity for many additional years in Carbondale. We can never be grateful enough. Please never forget that you and your mission make God present at this critical time of chaos in health care delivery.” These are indeed challenging times for all of us in health care. Yet it is important that we take time to remember who we are, and celebrate the stories and legacies of those shoulders we stand upon to get us to this point in our history. We thank and salute our Sponsors: Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; Franciscan Sisters of Allegany; Hope Ministries; Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill; Sisters of Mercy of the Americas (Mid-Atlantic Community, New York, Pennsylvania, Pacific West Community, Northeast Community, and South Central Community); Sisters of Providence; and Sisters of St. Joseph. Thank you for your leadership, your wisdom, and your guidance. And thank you for the faith you place in all colleagues of Catholic Health East to be good stewards of the resources entrusted to us. With your support, we pledge to continue to be a transforming, healing presence in the communities we are privileged to serve.
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