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Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center
Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center

Lewiston: Mount St. Mary's Hospital formalizing affiliation with Catholic Health

by jmaloni

Submitted

Tue, Apr 29th 2014 11:10 am

Catholic Health, Ascension Health and Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center have agreed in principle to formalize a comprehensive agreement to have Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center in Niagara County become a full member of the Catholic Health System.

Mount St. Mary's is currently part of Ascension Health, the nation's largest Catholic health system. Catholic Health is a member of Ascension Health, CHE Trinity Health and the Diocese of Buffalo.

Mount St. Mary's will join Catholic Health's other regional hospitals, which include Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, Kenmore Mercy Hospital, Sisters of Charity Hospital and its St. Joseph Campus in Cheektowaga, and its affiliate member, Bertrand Chaffee Hospital in Springville. The Our Lady of Peace Nursing Care Residence will remain part of Ascension Health.

In joining Catholic Health, Mount St. Mary's will continue to serve the residents of Niagara County with the high quality of care to which they have become accustomed. The health ministry will also have full access to Catholic Health's administrative and corporate services and be part of its broad network of health care services, which serve patients throughout Western New York. Plans call for enhancing primary and ambulatory services, expanding home and community-based services, improving operational efficiencies and hospital performance, and supporting physician recruitment to enhance care throughout Niagara County.

"We recognize that Niagara County and Western New York is a regional health care community," said Carmen Granto, board chair of Mount St. Mary's. "Our organizations are aligned with a common mission to continue the healing ministry of Jesus to serve those in need. Catholic Health and Mount St. Mary's already provide the highest quality care in the region. This is an opportunity for Mount St. Mary's to further enhance that care throughout Niagara County."

In response to tremendous changes happening in health care, both locally and nationally, Catholic Health and Mount St. Mary's have been working together under a collaborative services agreement the two groups signed in 2012. Additionally, Mount St. Mary's Hospital and its physicians are also members of Catholic Medical Partners, a clinically integrated physician network that also includes Catholic Health and its physicians.

"Through this association, we will work closely with the physicians and staff at Mount St. Mary's to improve access to care and strengthen health care services throughout the region," said Joe McDonald, president and CEO of Catholic Health. "The partnerships we have established with health care systems throughout Western New York and now Niagara County continues our goal to bring the highest level of care closer to people in need."

The final transition of Mount St. Mary's to the Catholic Health family will require corporate, religious and governmental approvals. Once approved, a "Certificate of Need" application will be filed with the New York State Department of Health, and other state approvals will follow. The approval process is expected to be completed later next year.

Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center (www.msmh.org) is a 175-bed community hospital in Lewiston. Its team of health care professionals includes 1,200 employees, more than 200 physicians and 250 volunteers, working with the latest technology and the most current programming. Other facilities include the 250-bed Our Lady of Peace Rehabilitation and Nursing Care Residence, the Center for Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, and the Neighborhood Health Center. 

Catholic Health (www.chsbuffalo.org) was formed in 1998 and is sponsored by the Diocese of Buffalo, the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, and the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, New York, Pennsylvania and Pacific West Community. Its corporate members are Ascension, the Diocese of Buffalo, and CHE Trinity Health. As one of the largest health systems in Western New York, Catholic Health serves nearly half a million patients and residents across its network of hospitals, subacute and long-term care facilities, primary care centers, home care agencies, diagnostic and treatment centers, adult homes, and rehabilitation centers. Catholic Health's 9,000 associates and 1,400 physicians are part of a healing ministry dating back more than 160 years. Among its many services, Catholic Health is known for excellence in cardiac care, stroke services, women's services, cancer care, bariatric surgery, vascular surgery, rehabilitation services and orthopedic care.

Ascension Health (www.ascensionhealth.org) is transforming health care by providing the highest quality care to all, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. Ascension Health, which is part of Ascension, provided $1.5 billion in care of persons living in poverty and other community benefit programs last year. It is the nation's largest Catholic and nonprofit health system. Its mission-focused health ministries employ more than 155,000 associates serving in more than 1,900 sites of care in 23 states and the District of Columbia.

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