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Catholic Health Care

A Mission that Stands the Test of Time

Rooted in the teachings of Christ and the example of St. Francis of Assisi, The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis have a rich tradition of serving the poor, the sick and the vulnerable.

Memorable Last Words

Before her passing, Mother M. Frances Krasse spoke these last words of instruction to her Sisters: "Dear Sisters, keep yourself in strict accord with the rules and statutes. Live in meekness and obedience. Nurse the sick with the greatest care and love; then will God's blessing be with you." 

With those words, the First Mother Superior crafted The Sisters' Mission which lives today through the service of all OSF HealthCare employees.

Our Culture

As an essential ministry of service of the Catholic Church, OSF HealthCare follows the moral vision and teaching of the Church. The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis and, by extension, all employees of OSF HealthCare align themselves with the Philosophy, Mission and Values that guide decision-making in a way that respects the dignity of the whole person and puts the needs of the patient first.

Here are just a few examples of what it means to keep the patient at the center of all we do:

Learn more about joining the OSF Community of Caregivers.

Keep Patients First

  • Enhance trust: Answer questions clearly, quickly, and thoroughly. Point to sources of more information as may be helpful to patients and their families. 
  • Honor their wishes of the patients in aspects of care. 
  • Provide a safe haven. At OSF, we strive to align our actions with our Values every day: our common ground is compassionate competence.
  • Assist with pastoral care: team contacts. At OSF we work with a community of ministers, attentive to spiritual needs.
  • Offer prayers. The Sisters and others pray daily for those who come to us in a time of need.
  • Provide for decision-making for end-of-life care. At OSF, we train volunteers to help draw up advanced directives.
  • Ethics consults as needed to help physicians, health care providers, patients and families in the decision-making process.
  • Provide respect, love and support to patients and their families with every encounter.

Help Meet Patient Needs

  • OSF HealthCare is a community of persons, "A Community of Caregivers," because we need each other to meet human needs in a complex health care setting.
  • Our Community of Caregivers always acts in accordance with our Value:  A caring response to the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of those we serve.
  • We provide a continuum of care that leads patients through smooth care transitions from one health care setting to another.
  • OSF HealthCare outreach services are designed to support individuals and communities in need.

Support the Families

  • Patient and family-centered care recognizes the importance of families in the health care setting. 
  • Answer the questions of family members with compassion and address their concerns.

Inspire Others to Come & Help Us

  • Regularly seek and encourage volunteers to help with appropriate services for patients and their families.
  • Continue to expand our Community of Caregivers as new needs arise among patients and the communities we serve.
  • Recognize people who are lifting all of us up in prayer.
  • Invite larger networks to contribute to our work
  • Support special causes (big and small): with ideas, talent, volunteers and monetary support.

Ethical & Religious Directives

As a Catholic health care organization, OSF HealthCare is committed to follow fully the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services as defined by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The introduction to the Directives notes, "The purpose of these Ethical and Religious Directives then is two-fold: first, to reaffirm the ethical standards of behavior in health care that flow from the Church’s teaching about the dignity of the human person; second, to provide authoritative guidance on certain moral issues that face Catholic health care today."

All of us involved in a Catholic health care organization are required to abide by the Ethical and Religious Directives including the sponsors, trustees, administrators, chaplains, physicians, health care personnel, volunteers and staff of these institutions and services.

The Conference of Catholic Bishops provides an excellent resource booklet that describes and explains all 72 Directives on their website.

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