Company Profile
Hospital Sisters Health System
Company Overview
Mission:
To reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through our high-quality Franciscan health care ministry.
Vision:
Rooted in our Franciscan Mission, we will be the unique, high-quality health system providing exceptional care, centered on the whole person.
Core Values:
Respect: Respect means the Franciscan respect for life from conception to natural death and for the dignity of each individual person. Respect is a commitment to freeing and empowering each person to develop his or her own potential.
Care: Care embodies the concern, compassion and sensitivity with which we care for our patients as individuals on a one-to-one basis. It depicts our way of dealing with patients, clients and colleagues. Many times, it is thought of as bedside behavior, but it also belongs in administrative offices, cafeterias and boardrooms.
Competence: Competence means that our work is performed, and our institutions are managed with the highest level of skill and ability. We are committed to recruiting and developing people who are competent in their work and whose values reflect our own. Our values are an integral part of our System’s strategic plan, which provides the overall framework for local activities.
Joy: Joy is the manner in which our colleagues and all who join us in our ministry seek to perform their work – the internal fulfillment of caring for others. It is an essential ingredient in bringing a sense of hope to those who suffer.
History
On July 2, 1844, a Franciscan priest, Father Christopher Bernsmeyer, witnessed the religious commitment of women in Our Lady of Grace Chapel in Telgte, a village outside the city of Muenster, Westphalia, Germany. This marked the foundation of the Hospital Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, a religious community dedicated to the service of the sick and those in need.
The Community grew rapidly in the early years and provided assistance to the sick in Westphalia and Silesia. The Sisters were quick to respond to health crises whenever they were called. Accepting the invitation of Bishop Peter Joseph Baltes of Alton, Illinois, 20 Sisters arrived in the United States on November 3, 1875. They established their Motherhouse in Springfield, Illinois and began their ministry by nursing the sick and poor in their homes. In small rural communities, hospitals were built—generally within walking distance of a railroad station. Over the years as the need for health care expanded and evolved, so too have the services provided by the 15 hospitals and network of physician partners of Hospital Sisters Health System.
In January 2020, HSHS acquired a medical surplus recovery organization called Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach which collects, repairs, packages, and distributes medical supplies and equipment to hospitals and clinics around the world. Currently, Mission Outreach secures usable medical supplies and equipment from over 100 hospitals and 18 clinics in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kansas, and Missouri. With more than $80 million in life-saving supplies sent, Mission Outreach has made a global impact. Founded in 2002, Mission Outreach is based in Springfield and housed in a 47,000 square foot facility to accommodate volunteers, staff, medical supplies, equipment, and distribution operations.