By: Dr. Tom Stewart, CEO, St. Joseph’s Health System
In celebration of Spiritual Care Awareness Week, I would like to honour the legacy that founded
our work over 167 years ago.
The Sisters of St. Joseph’s Hamilton have created a culture and commitment to excellence in
service and clinical care that touches every member of our team across the St. Joseph’s Health
System (SJHS).
Regardless of faith or culture, the one characteristic our people share is a deep belief in the
values our founders, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamilton instilled in our organization: that it is
an honour to serve – and in particular to ensure that those most vulnerable and marginalized
have access to compassionate, high-quality care.
This week is a reminder of this phenomenal legacy that we honour every day through
compassionate care, faith, and discovery.
Our member organizations are known for genuine compassion and caring, both locally and
around the world. Each of the organizations offers services according to their strengths, from
acute care, long-term care, and community care, to rehabilitation, hospice, community
outreach, and mental health.
As we continue to strive towards becoming Canada’s leading integrated health system I am pleased with the appointment of Gary Payne as Director of Spiritual Care for SJHS.
In this role, he will continue to lead the Spiritual Care departments at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and St. Mary’s General Hospital and will assume the lead of the Spiritual Care portfolio across SJHS. Over the course of the next year, he will be working with our senior leadership team and staff to develop a strategic plan for spiritual care across the SJHS.
We are blessed to have a committed team of spiritual care leaders across all of our organizations and I am pleased to share a photo of our St. Joseph’s Health System Spiritual Care Team.
I look forward to working with you and Gary over the coming months as we continue to live the
legacy every day and embrace the mission and values of the Sisters of St. Joseph’s in everything
we do.
Dr. Tom Stewart
CEO, St. Joseph’s Health System