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September
3rd:
Providentia Prima
10th:
Trustee/Senior Management Orientation
16th:
Audit Committee Training
18th:
Senior Management Group
24th:
Health Care Ministry
Concepts
Finance Committee
29th:
Talent Review Committee
October
1st/2nd:
Critical Conversations
8th:
Spiritual Care and Ethics Committee
Essentials of Management
(Del Gilbert)
20th:
Spiritual Care Committee
21st:
Finance Committee
22nd/23rd:
Planning Retreat
27th:
Claims Committee
28th/29th:
Heritage & Horizon
30th:
Environmental Committee
10th:
Human Resource Committee
19th:
Sponsors Council
Finance Committee
20th:
Senior Management Group
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In Memoriam
 "It is with great sadness that I write that Joel DiTrolio, our dear friend and former CFO, passed away on July 23rd after a long battle with lung cancer at his home in Hollis, NH surrounded by his loving family. Rita, Joel's wife, wanted everyone to know that Joel appreciated all the prayers, thoughts, cards and other communications which he received from Covenant members following his retirement.
As stated in Joel's obituary, 'Joel leaves many friends, but in particular The Grey Nuns with whom he worked for many years, and for whom he had great affection.'
Joel will remain forever in our memories.
On behalf of everyone at Covenant, we send our sympathy and prayers to his family."
David R. Lincoln, Covenant President/CEO
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COVENANT NEWS
Covenant Health Systems submits an annual Stewardship Report to The Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life in Rome, Italy. The following is the letter of acceptance of Covenant's 2008 report from Franc Cardinal Rodé, prefect of the Congregation, to Covenant Board Chair, Patricia Cahill, Esq.
"Thank you for your letter of May, 2009, the accompanying Covenant Health System Annual Stewardship Report 2008, the Corporate Report and the financial report.
"We congratulate you on this 25th Anniversary of the foundation of the Health System, as you now also look back on your first full year as a self-perpetuating Public Juridic Person. The Report reflects this experience as a Catholic Health System with a long tradition of excellence in providing a wide range of health care and related services.
"The issues and challenges that you are currently facing in the health care sector are indeed daunting. The Catholic ethos is being sorely tested in the current political and legal environment. In addition the Church's priority for the care of those who are poor is put under strain both by the existing funding structures and by the current economic crisis. Issues of quality and accessibility in long term and aged care are also of great concern.
"Nevertheless, the quality of service and fidelity to your Catholic identity remains strong. Your ongoing informal relationship with the Grey Nuns of Montreal, whose legacy you are continuing, and with the Sponsors Council of leaders of other Religious Congregations who have joined Covenant Health, is a reflection of this fidelity and identity.
"Your own initiatives and your collaboration with other Catholic Health Care providers in workplace spirituality and leadership formation is a vital contribution to the spiritual health of your organization and to the whole sector. The provision of long-term formation planning will become even more important as your senior leaders retire.
"The relatively recent focus on the concept and practice of 'environmental stewardship' synchronizes with other ethical considerations based on gospel values, which Catholic health systems promote and apply. No doubt your theological and spiritual reflections on these issues will continue and deepen, as the science of environmental health demands significant changes to health care. It will be interesting to see how this aspect of stewardship contributes to the future wellness of the community and of the environment.
"Thank you also for visiting this Dicastery recently. Our conversations together during the meeting helped to animate the printed word for us and you gave us a close-up view of the strength and vitality of your passion for the ministry of healing.
"We look forward with great interest to further updates on the development of the Covenant Health Systems and its various initiatives.
"With personal best wishes and prayers for you and all whose contribution to the healing ministry of Christ is reflected in this Report."
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Both Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's recently affirmed Covenant Health Systems' 'A' Rating on approximately $142 million of outstanding revenue bonds issued by the Massachusetts Health and Educational Facilities Authority and New Hampshire Health and Educational Facilities Authority. Fitch's outlook remains stable, Standard & Poor's outlook has gone from stable to negative. Fitch writes: "The 'A' rating affirmation is supported by Covenant's geographic and revenue diversity, multi-service strategic approach, solid historical operating profitability, ample liquidity position and sufficient debt service coverage. The system's diverse revenue stream remains Covenant's primary credit strength, with revenues derived from acute care, rehabilitative and long-term care.
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AROUND THE SYSTEM
St. Andre Health Care (Biddeford) has received accreditation for a period of three years from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) for its Person-Centered Long Term Care Community and Person-Centered Long Term Care Community: Dementia Care Specialty Program. This is the first accreditation that CARF, the international accrediting body, has awarded to St. Andre Health Care. In addition, St. Andre is the second recipient for Long Term Care in Maine and the first for Dementia Specialty in Maine.
This accreditation decision represents the highest level of accreditation that can be awarded to an organization and shows the organization's substantial conformance to the CARF standards. An organization receiving a three-year accreditation has put itself through a rigorous peer review process and has demonstrated to a team of surveyors during an on-site visit that its programs and services are the highest quality, measurable, and accountable. The governance standards were optional and St. Andre successfully completed those with a finding of "No Recommendations."
CARF is an independent, non-profit accrediting body whose mission is to promote the quality, value, and optimal outcomes of services through a consultative accreditation process that centers on enhancing the lives of the persons served. CARF was founded in 1966 and is the accrediting body that establishes consumer-focused standards to help organizations measure and improve the quality of their programs and services.
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St. Joseph Hospital (Bangor) received two Avatar International awards, including the 2008 Five Star Service Loyalty and Endorsement Award for Inpatient Care as well as the Bronze Innovation Award for creative measures implemented by the St. Joseph Hospital (SJH) Emergency Department.
St. Joseph Hospital's exceptional scores on recent Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) surveys supported the hospital in receiving this prestigious Service Loyalty and Endorsement Award for Inpatient Care for the second time. When patients were asked if they would recommend SJH to others, the number of respondents who said "definitely yes" placed SJH in the 98th percentile ranking on surveys completed during the fourth quarter of 2008.
The second award, the Bronze Innovation Award, is in recognition of St. Joseph Hospital's Emergency Department's quality improvement measures that were innovative and demonstrated effectively. Emergency Department Director, Kimberly Lugdon, says the department made an effort to focus on the fundamental areas which allows staff to create a better patient experience. "We're making sure every patient receives a warm blanket and that we're being compassionate and understanding of our patients," says Lugdon. "We're also focusing on how we relate to one another as a team. We're taking time to recognize one another for our work.
Avatar International is a research and consulting company and an industry leader in healthcare quality improvement services. This is the second year in a row that St. Joseph Hospital has been awarded the Five Star Service Loyalty and Endorsement Inpatient Award in recognition of the hospital attaining the highest score nationally in Avatar's database, regardless of hospital size, in patient loyalty and patient endorsement of SJH to others. This award reflects the effort that St. Joseph Hospital puts into service quality.
********************************************************** The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons has granted a three-year accreditation with commendation to the Oncology Program at St. Joseph Hospital (Nashua). Accreditation with commendation is the highest level awarded by the CoC. The accreditation was awarded after an on-site evaluation by a physician surveyor. Patients who use a CoC-accredited cancer program are ensured that they have access to:
- Comprehensive care, including of state-of-the-art services and equipment
- A multispecialty, team approach to coordinate the best treatment options
- Information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment options
- Access to cancer-related information, education, and support
- A cancer registry that collects data on type and stage of cancers and treatment results and requires lifelong patient follow-up
- Ongoing monitoring and improvement of care
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St. Mary's d'Youville Pavilion (Lewiston) a 210-bed, long-term care facility has earned the Maine Health Care Association (MHCA) Quality Improvement Award, which recognizes long-term care facilities that have made quality improvement and culture-based advances in caregiving. To receive the award, facilities must first complete a voluntary quality improvement accreditation process and then demonstrate quality improvement-driven achievements in each of the following areas: staff retention, consistent assignment, clinical quality measures, and customer satisfaction.
The award builds upon the statewide MHCA accreditation process that promotes the development of systematic ways to continually improve long-term care facility quality and increase staff retention. The certification process helps nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Maine clarify, understand, and prioritize several important areas of quality improvement in order to set realistic, facility-specific quality improvement goals.
"St. Mary's d'Youville Pavilion is proud of this quality award and pleased to be a part of an unprecedented statewide effort among providers," said Deb Fournier, administrator. "We all share the very important goal of creating an environment where high quality nursing home care is an expectation and reality."
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Mary Immaculate Health/Care Services (Lawrence) will honor
Joseph S. McManus, CEO, Lawrence General Hospital, with the St. Marguerite d'Youville "Pilgrimage of Love Award" at their "Evening of Sharing and Caring" on September 22 at the Andover Country Club.
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D'Youville Senior Care (Lowell) will host their 7th annual "Lasting Impressions Celebration" on Monday, October 26 at the Vesper Country Club.
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 Covenant Health Systems compiled a "best practices" of activities for those in elder care from around the system entitled, "Different, Creative & New: Activities and Programs for Elder Residents." The 30 page booklet highlights "best practices" for those in nursing homes and assisted living residences including a "Haiku Poetry Group," a "Pirates of Penzance" play staged by residents and more. If any Covenant member did not receive a copy of this booklet, please e mail us at info@covenanths.org. |
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PEOPLE NEWS
Article reproduced from Boston Business Journal featuring Sr. Jacquelyn McCarthy, CEO/administrator, Bethany Health Care (Covenant affiliate)
" Sr. Jacquelyn M. McCarthy, CSJ has been a fixture at Bethany Health Care (Framingham), a sponsored ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph, for 28 years, the last dozen as chief executive officer.  "Now a long-term care facility, Bethany is being squeezed by rising costs and Medicaid reimbursement rates that have not increased at the same pace. 'My philosophy has always been that if you treat the staff well, they will treat residents well,' said McCarthy. 'We try to provide a great work environment and that's not something that's negotiable with me.' "McCarthy has protected the high staff-to-resident ratio - patients receive 3.8 to 4.1 care hours per day, higher than many nursing homes - and employee-friendly programs such as subsidized lunches and dinners and monthly employee breakfasts. Bethany also awarded merit raises this year, while many other institutions froze wages. "'The end result is that our residents get really good care, and that is shown in the ratings we get from the federal and state governments,' said McCarthy, who was the director of nursing at the facility prior to taking the helm. "'The 169-bed facility has a turnover rate 50 percent below the state average for certified nursing assistants,' said Barbara Shockley, director of mission advancement at Bethany. "Employees stay longer and that deepens the relationships with patients. That, in turn, has helped Bethany record 11 straight years of deficiency-free ratings from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. 'It's all been done despite significant financial challenges,' added Shockley, who was hired three years ago to fundraise for Bethany. 'Quality is just not compromised.' "Holding the line on benefits while seeing budgets squeezed has forced McCarthy to seek savings elsewhere. One major area of investment is in energy consumption, with Bethany installing a 150-kilowatt co-generation system that enables it to produce 60 percent of the electricity used by the facility, while also supplying all the hot water used on the property. The system is projected to save Bethany $118,000 a year, and because the boiler was leased, there were lower upfront costs. McCarthy also installed a system that melts down sharps and reduced the cost of hazardous medical waste removal by 90 percent. "Bethany has also spent significant resources to reduce the number of times patients have to be taken off site for additional medical care. Since 2004, the number of hospitalizations has been reduced by 73 percent, a statistic representing not only cost savings but enhanced care for patients. The effort earned Bethany an award from the American Medical Directors Association for quality of life improvement among nursing home residents, an award that came with a $10,000 grant. "'When you care for people in the place they live, they don't get confused or as stressed,' said McCarthy. 'If you care for people where they live, they tend to get better quicker. Providing quality care is always the ultimate goal.'"
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Peter B. Davis, FACHE, president/ CEO, St. Joseph Hospital (Nashua) announced his plans to retire on July 31, 2010. "St. Joseph Hospital is a very special place, and it has been my honor to work alongside the most talented and dedicated group of physicians and employees for the past 25 years. We have been inspired by being able to build on a century of service to meet the growing needs of our community through innovation, leading-edge technology, and the highest-quality medical care. Our medical staff, employees, and volunteers are recognized among the very best by all the standard quality measures and by those who count the most - our patients, and I am grateful for this," Davis stated. "Over the course of the next year, I will work closely with the St. Joseph Hospital Board of Directors to provide a smooth and seamless transition."  As part of the year long planned transition process, the Board has constituted a national search committee to be chaired by Dale Gilpin, chairman of the St. Joseph Hospital Board of Directors. "It is our expectation that our plan to find a successor for Peter over the next year will provide for a smooth and seamless transition," Gilpin said. St. Joseph Healthcare has become an integrated healthcare delivery system that includes one of New Hampshire's (NH) largest acute care hospitals, a primary and specialty care physician network, the state's largest ambulance provider and the state's only freestanding emergency room in Milford. Additionally, during Davis' tenure, St. Joseph Hospital founded the state's first dedicated Breast Care Center, the area's most comprehensive Cardiovascular Center and southern New Hampshire's leading Oncology Center. In 2006, Davis led the organization in opening a new state-of-the-art ambulatory care building providing greater ease of access to services for patients and their families. Additionally, during Davis' 25 years of service, St. Joseph Hospital became the first community hospital in New Hampshire to achieve Magnet nursing status as well as the only hospital to obtain CARF stroke program accreditation. St. Joseph Hospital has also been recognized as a New Hampshire "Best Company to Work For" multiple times by Business NH Magazine. Peter chaired the United Way campaign and Board in Nashua, chaired the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce Board, and currently is Chairman of the NH Hospital Association Board and serves as a Member of the American Hospital Association Regional Policy Board. He served as a member of the Youville Hospital Board, Cambridge, MA and also on the Board of Directors, NH Community College Foundation Board. "I have worked with Peter for 25 years and have seen his dedication to St. Joseph's mission, the careful way he responds to community and employee needs, the deliberate nature of his decision-making process and his commitment to quality and patient-centered care," added David R. Lincoln. "Peter has been a valuable and cherished member of the Covenant team in carrying forth the Catholic healing ministry that is our heritage."
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Shannon Coro, administrator, St. Mary Health Care Center (Worcester) has been named a recipient of the Worcester Business Journal's "40 under 40 Award." The award honors the best and brightest individuals under age 40 who have  demonstrated significant contributions to Worcester's growth and well-being through professional endeavors and their leadership in working with charitable organizations. Shannon was chosen out of a field of 130 nominees.
The 10th Annual Award Ceremony will be held at Mechanics Hall on September 16th and Lt. Governor Murray will be the keynote speaker.
The following was taken from the Worcester Business Journal:
Career highlights: I am an administrator at St. Mary Health Care Center, a Catholic nonprofit organization sponsored by Covenant Health Systems that offers long-term care and short-term rehabilitation. I started in 2004 as a part-time social worker and later became the director of social services. In 2005, I enrolled in the master's in health care administration program at Worcester State College, and after graduating, I became the administrator.
Community involvement: I'm currently on the board of directors for the Latin American Health Alliance, which addresses health care related disparities in the Latino community. I have also served on the Lt. James F. "Jay" Lyons III Memorial Scholarship selection panel for the Greater Worcester Community Foundation.
Biggest professional success: I am currently the administrator at St. Mary Health Care Center and this I believe is my biggest success professionally. My talents, education and professional and personal experiences have allowed me to be in a position to truly affect change, to help improve the quality of lives of our residents and to foster education and professional development of the staff at St. Mary's.
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