In his address, he called us to “give comfort to every man and every woman of our time”.
As part of the Year of Mercy, a special jubilee event took place in June for those who work with the sick and persons with disabilities, with the theme of ‘Going above and beyond’.
At St John of God Health Care, this is how we approach our ministry.
Outstanding health care and access to the highest quality research, technology and clinical expertise are expected from a health care provider and St John of God Health Care is recognised as a leader in these areas. We provide our patients and clients with the best that modern medicine and care can offer.
We believe this is just the start of good care. First and foremost, our patients and clients are individuals: people with families, friends, concerns, interests and fears.
Putting the person receiving care at the centre of everything we do and considering all their needs – physical, emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual - is what makes us different from other health care providers.
For this reason, St John of God Health Care has taken ‘It’s in how we respond’ as the theme for this year’s Annual Report.
Responding to each person, and to each other, from a perspective of openness and generosity, to provide a reason for hope and respecting each person’s dignity is at the core of our Mission and is encapsulated in Our Vision. It is lived by our caregivers every day, across all our divisions.
In 2015/16 we continued our growth trajectory, opening our St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals in Western Australia, taking over ownership of Hawkesbury District Health Service from another Catholic provider in New South Wales and continuing major redevelopments in both Western Australia and Victoria.
In particular, we have been delighted that a significant portion of this growth has been in public health, partnering with the Western Australian and New South Wales governments to help meet community need.
We also continued to expand our work in social justice and outreach, increasing our involvement in areas such as disability advocacy and commencing work on our new stretch Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan.
Ensuring St John of God Health Care remains faithful to its Mission is one of the Trustees’ key responsibilities and in 2015/16 we completed the review of our Mission Management Model.
The review made a number of recommendations to ensure the Mission not only continues to inform our organisational culture but is also fully integrated and the key influencer for the way we deliver our care.
The focus on Mission integration will help us continue to be a leader not only in Catholic health care, but also in the Australian health sector, a key strategic priority.
