St. Vincent Charity’s ambulatory health services are part of the new St. Vincent Charity Health Campus, which will also include services meeting a wide range of community-identified needs, including:
- Behavioral health
- Youth and families
- Food and nutrition
- Workforce development
- Physical activity
- Transportation
- Housing
- Learning and education
- Arts and culture
These programmatic areas and the vision for the Health Campus were co-created by the Sisters of Charity, residents of Central Neighborhood, and Cleveland-area institutions following a comprehensive year-long community voice and planning process, that began in June 2021. Internationally recognized MASS Design Group led, in partnership with the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland and Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood, the research effort and facilitated community dialogue to understand directly from the community what social and economic needs the Health Campus should address.
"MASS Design Group is noted globally for leading design innovations in health care facilities with an emphasis on healing and justice. The goal in developing the St. Vincent Charity Health Campus is to help remove barriers to health and wellbeing for people living in our community, and to create opportunities to support this important and historic part of Cleveland,” said Robyn Gordon, board chair of the new St. Vincent Charity Health Campus.
Residents and representatives of health and social service organizations, primary care providers, youth development organizations, food security organizations and champions, community gardeners, workforce development organizations, higher education leaders, foundation leaders, real estate developers, public libraries, artists, cultivators, and public officials all provided input to help shape the vision for the Health Campus through more than 30 focus groups, 25 partner meetings, 15 guided tours and five special events.
"We listened to the lived experiences of neighbors and learned that in order to lead healthier lives, our community deserves spaces that nourish mind, body and spirit," said Christopher Kroner, MASS Design Group lead principal. "For St. Vincent Charity Health Campus to be truly unifying, each space needs to establish an experience of radical welcome."
Establishment of a New Non-profit
Following the community voice and planning phase, the Sisters of Charity Health System established the St. Vincent Charity Health Campus as a new 501c3 non-profit entity among its family of Catholic ministries and named Susanna H. Krey as president & CEO. The new non-profit will lead efforts to bring new services, programs and partners in the community-identified categories to the Health Campus, alongside ambulatory care services provided by St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.
"We are pleased to launch St. Vincent Charity Health Campus as a whole-person approach for the Cleveland community and especially Central neighborhood, which is home to five – now six – Sisters of Charity ministries," says Krey. “With the ambulatory care services of St. Vincent and the new services and partners we will bring to the health campus, we are proud to transform the healing ministry of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine once again.”
As a core foundation of its services, the St. Vincent Charity Health Campus is developing its initial pilot programs to focus on: physical health through ambulatory care, youth and families, food and nutrition, and behavioral health crisis and recovery.
For example, the Health Campus seeks to enhance access and address the symptoms of trauma by creating a new coordinated response to crises in the community and enhancing access to services that support long-term recovery. Specifically, the St. Vincent Charity Health Campus will expand the mental health and addiction crisis continuum of care by partnering with community entities and developing a crisis & recovery services pilot. The pilot will aim to address all age ranges and acuity levels, especially lower acuity needs, which are not being met based on research conducted in greater Cleveland and across Northeast Ohio.
The Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland funded the community engagement process and provided executive leadership for the initiative. Krey expressed gratitude to the many residents, Promise Ambassadors and partners who are on this journey with the Sisters of Charity to inform, shape and support the co-creation of the St. Vincent Charity Health Campus. Updates regarding pilot projects, funding and how the health campus will continue to be developed will be shared with the community on an ongoing basis.