A TIME TO CONNECT VIRTUAL ASSEMBLY 2023 JUNE 12 — 13
PERIODICAL RATE PUBLICATION
JULY 2023 VOLUME 39, NUMBER 11
Vision statement compels CHA to be force for change By JULIE MINDA
CHA debuted its first vision statement at the 2023 Catholic Health Assembly. Developed through a collaborative process that began last fall, the statement is: “We will empower bold change to elevate human flourishing.” Introducing the language at the vir-
We Will Empower Bold Change to Elevate Human Flourishing
tual gathering June 12-13, CHA President and Chief Executive Officer Sr. Mary Haddad, RSM, said, “Articulating a vision — a desired future — for CHA is a collective effort toward a future that serves the good of all, particularly those who are poor and vulnerable.” Sr. Mary explained in her remarks that it Continued on 11
Author cites moral injury, not necessarily burnout, as cause of clinicians’ distress By VALERIE SCHREMP HAHN
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Jenn Lyke/@CHA
tions; and a chance to join an interactive session to connect with peers from across the Catholic health ministry. The three keynote speakers each delved into an aspect of wellness. Sr. Mary also revealed CHA’s new vision statement — “We will empower bold change to elevate human flourishing” — on June 12, the first of the virtual event’s two
While pulling weeds in her garden, Dr. Wendy Dean listened to a news report about moral injury in drone pilots who never actually saw combat. She had heard of moral injury before — doctor and psychiatrist Jonathan Shay, who had worked with Vietnam veterans suffering with posttraumatic stress disorder, developed the term. It’s the feelings of distress and betrayal that happen when Dean someone can’t do their job or has to act or witness something against their values or moral beliefs. Dean, a keynote speaker at CHA’s 2023 Catholic Health Assembly, recalled making the connection between drone pilots and what she saw in medicine. “I thought, hang on, if these folks who go from their suburban house to a base, fly their drones and go back home again can experience moral injury, maybe other folks can too, including those in health care,” she said. A psychiatrist by training, Dean is president and co-founder of The Moral Injury
Damond Boatwright, president and chief executive officer of Hospital Sisters Health System, joins Sr. Mary Haddad, RSM, president and chief executive officer of CHA, in a studio at Once Films in St. Louis for the broadcast of the 2023 Catholic Health Assembly. CHA installed Boatwright as chair of the association’s board of trustees during the two-day virtual event. Just over 400 people registered to attend.
Calls for deeper connections resound at CHA Assembly By LISA EISENHAUER
CHA brought together care providers, executives, administrators and others within the Catholic health ministry for its 2023 Catholic Health Assembly and encouraged them to make authentic connections, practice self-care, and align their work with a newly stated vision. The event’s theme was “A Time to Con-
nect.” Sr. Mary Haddad, RSM, president and chief executive officer of CHA, told those gathered: “As stewards of this ministry, it is both our treasure and responsibility to invite others into the connectedness to which we are called and to be more fully aware of the sacred in our lives.” Attendees got encouragement to tend to their own wellness; opportunities to share their thoughts, comments and ques-
Through workers’ voices, St. Luke’s Health showcases its diversity By LISA EISENHAUER
St. Luke’s Health is using a video platform to spotlight the diverse cultures and experiences of its workers. Tyler Peavy, director of clinical integration networks for the Houston-based system that is part of CommonSpirit Health, discussed the videos that make up the Listening to Our Voices series at a session of
the 2023 Catholic Health Assembly. Peavy said the goals of the campaign are twofold. One is to show St. Luke’s employees that there are others with similar backgrounds to their own working alongside them. Peavy The second goal, Peavy said, is to make patients aware of the diver-
sity of the system’s workforce. The hope is that if patients see care providers who look like them and have similar backgrounds to their own, they will be more comfortable on their visits to St. Luke’s facilities, he added. St. Luke’s is rolling out the videos monthly. Each is about three minutes long. Staff are viewing the videos as reflections at the start of meetings. The screenings are typically followed by discussions about
what the video brought to mind, Peavy said. “This is not just a black or white thing,” he noted. “There’s so many different backgrounds and different walks of life people bring to the table each and every day.”
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