This reflection was written by Julie Chamberlain, MSW, LSW, a hospice social worker at Redeemer Health.

As a hospice social worker, I am always looking for resources that could be beneficial to our patients and families as they process the multitude of feelings that arise during the grieving process. I was thrilled when I received a call from Barbara Tonetti asking if her daughter, Julia, could organize a collection of children’s books to be donated to the bereavement program at Redeemer Health Mercer Home Care.

Barbara spoke kindly as she reflected on her family’s own personal history with us, saying, “Holy Redeemer is a special place for me and my family. Actually, Julia and I were both born at Holy Redeemer Hospital. When Julia was born, she had to spend some time in the NICU. I will never forget our time in that unit.”

Julia is now a junior in high school, and thriving. As Barbara and Julia were pondering volunteer projects that Julia could do for her National Honor Society community service hours, they spoke with members of their community. It was during a discussion with their neighbor, fellow Redeemer Health Mercer Home Care social worker Sara Organic, that the idea for the book collection began to take root.

Julia’s planning soared from there, and she researched children's books that focus on death, loss, coping, and grieving. Then she requested book donations and monetary contributions to help buy books. Eventually, Julia collected 21 books, which she and Barbara proudly dropped off at our office in May.

They told us how books have been a source of support for them through their own experiences with loss. Barbara explained, “Julia was little when my mother was dying. And you know, kids don’t always want to sit down and read, so I picked up children’s books focused on what was happening, and I would read aloud in my mom’s room. I knew my mom could hear my voice, but I also knew that Julia was listening, even if she was playing. The words from those books were helpful to all of us during that time…so these books are not just a resource for children.”

Our hospice team is extremely grateful for the time, planning, and effort that Julia put into this project, and I am confident the books she collected will be helpful to many people for years to come.

Lafayette and St. Joseph Manor, two Redeemer Health Life Care communities, are now offering an opportunity for prospective residents who are considering personal care to experience resident life before making a permanent move.

This opportunity is available through a respite stay program, which allows for a short-term stay in a private room that includes three chef-prepared meals each day, daily housekeeping, leisure and social activities, assistance with activities of daily living, and medication administration.

A respite stay at one of our Redeemer Health Life Care communities is an ideal way to better understand, through first-hand experience, if the community ideally complements the needs and desires of a prospective resident and their family. Additionally, if a move occurs, the resident can be partially credited toward their first monthly fee. For more information, call Claire Balasa or Claudia Fisher at 215-214-2877.

The following is an observance of Mental Health Awareness Month by Victoria Oliver, MA, LPC. Victoria is a licensed professional counselor, and Senior Director of Enterprise Design and Improvement at Redeemer Health.

Horticulture is the art of garden cultivation and management. What a lovely and important definition. During spring, specifically Mental Health Awareness Month in May, it is fitting to reflect on how we cultivate and manage our own lives as we are preparing to cultivate our gardens.

Here are the factors to help create and maintain a flourishing garden and how these principles can apply to each of us:

Location – Location and position of a garden is one of the most critical elements of success. You need to think about whether it gets enough (or too much) water and nutrients. It needs to have exposure to sunlight and optimal conditions. It needs to have space.

What about you? Sometimes repositioning ourselves is necessary and vital to growth. Are you in the position where you get what you need to grow and flourish? Do you need a new environment or space so that you can flourish? Are you getting enough of what you need or too much of what you don’t?

Planning – Soil is often lacking in nutrients and other things it needs to support a thriving garden. Doing a litmus test of your soil can help you determine if you need to add or remove things. My family has an organic garden and we truck in mushroom soil annually and add compost. We plan our garden out each year and rotate plots. Crop rotation allows us to preserve nutrients in the soil and is said to boost nutrients for the following year. We put time, thought, and care into our garden.

Are you stuck in patterns and consistent behaviors that do not serve you and allow you to reach your full potential? Do you give your body proper nutrients? Do you ever take a personal litmus test to determine what you need to add or remove from your life? 

Weeds – Sometimes in order for your garden to blossom, you need to do some weeding. This may seem daunting, I know. But once you start the process (and it is a process because weeds continue to grow), you will feel a sense of relief. You will see things more clearly and give your plants space to grow.

When you weed your garden, it can claim the water, soil, and sunlight that is meant for it to receive. You can also do the same in your life. Perhaps the weeds in your life are toxic people, behaviors, or commitments you don’t really want or need. You have permission (and are encouraged to) pull them out. You can claim and embrace the nourishment you will experience by doing the work you may have been avoiding.

A garden takes love and patience. What better way to grow a garden then to plant the things you love to eat? It is such a magical and beautiful thing to place a small, fragile seed in the soil…to water it…to nourish it...to see that tiny little sprout emerge from the earth and then watch it grow. What practices or routines do you have in your life that nourish you and help you grow? Do you give yourself time, care, and love? Are you patient with yourself? Do you give yourself credit for small steps, improvement, and growth?

Spring is about renewal and rebirth. Spring is also about planning and growth. I hope you give yourself the time and space to think about how you can cultivate your best life during Mental Health Awareness Month.

If you, a family member, or a loved one experience mental health challenges or crisis, contact Redeemer Health today to get the care you need. Call 215-914-4190 to schedule an appointment for behavioral health services. Visit redeemerhealth.org/behavioralhealth for more information.

Also, Redeemer Health’s Life Story Coaching helps clients see past their problems to their possibilities, by understanding the stories they tell themselves today can be changed to allow them to live new, more powerful, and transformational ones. Call the Redeemer Health Call Center at 800-818-4747 to connect with a coach. Visit https://www.redeemerhealth.org/services/health-care/life-story-coaching for more information.

Meadowbrook, Pa. – May 10, 2022 Redeemer Health has announced plans to explore forming a strategic partnership for its Health Care Division, which includes Holy Redeemer Hospital, Holy Redeemer Physician and Ambulatory Services (HRPAS) and related assets. As part of this initiative, a Request for Proposal (RFP) has been sent to several potential partners.

“Redeemer Health is committed to forming partnerships that add value to the communities we serve and support our mission to Care, Comfort and Health,” said Michael Laign, President & CEO of Redeemer Health. “We believe a strategic partnership will benefit enhancing staff retention and recruitment, providing infrastructure expertise and innovation, and furthering population health strategies that benefit community members, employers and providers,” he said.

With this initiative, Redeemer Health is not considering selling the hospital, but instead partnering with other health care providers who share its commitment to serving current and future communities including efforts to address health inequities and disparities.

“If we decide to move forward with a strategic partnership, staff will remain Redeemer Health employees. Our employees and our Medical Staff are valued and respected for the vital role they have in the success of Redeemer Health now and in the future. A primary goal of this partnership strategy is to ensure we continue to recruit and retain the talent needed to meet the growing and changing needs of our community,” said Laign.

“The positive outcomes from this approach are numerous while maintaining our identity and commitments to those we serve,” Laign continued. Redeemer Health and Holy Redeemer Hospital will remain Catholic and continue to fulfill its mission to Care, Comfort and Heal.

This is the first step of an extensive exploratory process. Review of the proposals and possible selection of a Strategic Partner is expected to take several months.
 

Redeemer Health in partnership with MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper is now using a non-surgical image-guided radiation technology that offers expanded treatment capabilities. Installation of a new linear accelerator (LINAC) was made possible with the help of a $2 million grant from Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP). The technology gives radiation oncologists the ability to deliver stereotactic radiation therapy and stereotactic radiosurgery through targeted external beam radiation, which can preserve surrounding healthy tissue.

“This grant funding, and its resulting technology installation, has given the Redeemer Health community faster, safer treatment options,” said Sheena Jain, MD, director of radiation oncology at Redeemer Health in partnership with MD Anderson at Cooper. “We now offer our patients stereotactic radiosurgery for malignant and benign abnormalities in the brain.”

Stereotactic radiosurgery is a non-surgical technique that uses multiple, precisely focused, small beams of radiation that target an abnormality, while limiting the dose to normal tissue, explained Dr. Jain. This new technology will be complimented with new software to expand Redeemer Health’s safety and quality assurance program.

“About 50% of cancer patients need radiation therapy as part of their treatment plan,” said Dr. Jain.  “A primary objective in radiation therapy is to deliver the proper dose of radiation with pinpoint precision to the tumor, without harming surrounding healthy tissue. The linear accelerator helps us achieve those objectives.” 

“We are most thankful to Governor Tom Wolf and Senator Art Haywood, who provided much of the energy behind our RACP grant application,” said Michael B. Laign, President and CEO of Redeemer Health. “We also are grateful to Senator Maria Collett, and Representative Ben Sanchez for their strong support in securing this funding. We want to thank all of our elected leaders in the Pennsylvania communities we serve for making a difference in the care we can provide to cancer patients.”

“I am glad that Redeemer Health in partnership with MD Anderson at Cooper, Senator Collett, and I can support this life-saving advancement in local health care,” said Senator Haywood.

“I’m thrilled to have been able to help secure this critical funding for Redeemer Health for the expansion of their cancer center,” said Senator Collett. “As a nurse and the wife of a chronic cancer patient, I know just how important it is to have convenient access to quality care, and, with this expansion, Redeemer Health in partnership with MD Anderson at Cooper will be able to extend their services to even more local patients and their families.”

“I was pleased to be part of the successful effort to secure a $2 million RCAP award for Redeemer Health. This will ensure our community has more options for cancer care close to home,” said Rep. Sanchez.

The funds supported the construction of the linear accelerator vault used to house the LINAC at Holy Redeemer Hospital as well as renovation of more than 3,000 square feet of cancer center space to accommodate the new device.

“With this funding, we also have the opportunity to create waiting rooms and changing rooms designed to support our mission to provide care, comfort, and healing in a welcoming and hospitable space,” said Dr. Jain. “We are very excited to offer these advancements and contribute to continued growth at Redeemer Health.”

 “This technology will not only increase the technical services that we can offer our patients,” said William Scarlett, DO, executive director of Redeemer Health in partnership with MD Anderson at Cooper. “With the new body contour imaging cameras that use radio frequency identification, and the biometric contactless palm scanner, we will improve safety and accuracy for those in treatment. This is an exciting time at Redeemer Health and we are proud to be supporting our community with advanced technology.” 

MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston was part of the international consortium instrumental in developing this new technology, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2019. For more information about Redeemer Health’s comprehensive cancer care services, visit https://www.redeemerhealth.org/services/health-care/cancer-care.
 

Of the entire staff of Redeemer Health, 84% are women. Each and every woman on the Redeemer Health team has made incredible contributions, and the input and commitment to our patients, residents, clients and all team members are an integral factor to our continued and sustained success. 

It is our intention to recognize the contributions of several women throughout our organization. Yet just as no timeframe can encompass their contributions, so can this single month not sum up the history and achievements of the women of Redeemer Health. As such, it is our intention to continue to recognize these women, as well as other members of our diverse and incredible staff, throughout the year.

You can find the first 3 of these stories below, and continue to check back as we populate this page with more incredible stories!

Sr. Ellen Marvel

Karen Renson

Patrice Morris

An unexpected $25,000 gift from Amazon will help Philadelphia families experiencing homelessness.

Anne Marie Collins, Vice President/Executive Director of the Drueding Center, received an email late last year from an Amazon staff member who had worked in the office of U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa).

Amazon was looking to donate to Philadelphia nonprofits, the email said. The staffer had recommended Drueding Center, a comprehensive program that serves 400 to 500 families a year through residential and community services, child care, and a food pantry.

As part of their advocacy work, Collins and board members visit legislators’ offices, often meeting with staff.

“The visits are an opportunity to share what our program is, what we do and our impact, and the need for continued government support,” Collins said. “Obviously we made an impression on him.”

Colin Newman, Amazon’s public policy director for Pennsylvania, said the company prides itself “on establishing local roots in the communities in which we live and work.”

"As our footprint in Philadelphia has grown in recent years, so too has our support for local organizations, like Drueding Center,” Newman said. “The work that is done by the team at Drueding is very challenging, important, and admirable. Amazon is very pleased to lend a helping hand to such a deserving organization."

Drueding receives government funding but also must raise support through grants, foundations, and events. Because Amazon’s gift supports general operations, it will help Drueding fill in gaps and continue programs that are not funded by the government, according to Patricia M. Wynne, Redeemer Health Associate Vice President for Philanthropy.  

Drueding Center’s residential services provides transitional housing, case management support, and life skills training to families who come from the city shelter system.

Community services include the After Care program, which follows families for seven years after they move out of transitional housing; New Neighbors, a permanent supporting housing program for families who have a member with a disability; and the Blueprint case management program.

The center’s state-licensed STAR 4 child care center offers early childhood education for resident children, community children, and some staff children.

Drueding also has a Green Light Food Pantry, one of two in the city, that provides only healthy, nutritious foods for people experiencing food insecurity.

"As part of Redeemer Health, Drueding shares the same Mission to Care, Comfort and Heal," Collins said.

“Our theory of change is that our families will build the skills to heal from trauma, restore their hope, and end the cycle of homelessness,” she said.

We invite you to inspire others by getting involved and making a difference individually or with your family. Please contact the Redeemer Health Office of Philanthropy at 215-914-4000 or giving@holyredeemer.com, or visit www.redeemerhealth.org/giving/ways-give.