Mead, system vice president and chief mission integration officer for St. Vincent Health in Indianapolis, was talking about the three-year partnership between the Jasper hospital and the Ferdinand Benedictines. The sisters’ Spirituality Ministry team developed the spirituality component of the hospital’s integrative medicine program, which provides a variety of therapeutic tools for patients, and their families, that complement conventional treatment and focus on the mind, body, and soul.

The audience, mostly health care providers from across southern Indiana, also heard about the program’s benefits from several other speakers, including Sisters Maria Tasto, Michelle Mohr, and Anita Louise Lowe.

Sister Maria was the luncheon keynote speaker along with Mead, talking on the topic “Becoming Who We Are.”

Ray Snowden, president and CEO of Memorial Hospital, said in a breakout session about the sisters’ Compassionate Care & Healing programs, “The sisters are a tremendous treasure at our back door. We have this incredible resource right here.

“The sisters developed a wonderful program for us. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. I am very pleased with this. I think it will increase our efficiency and effectiveness, and I think we will be better caregivers.”

Charlotte Stephenson, a hospital nurse, thought the sisters’ programs were “very rewarding.” “They made me step back, and realize God is with me all the time,” she said. “I am very thankful for the sisters.”

The hospital and the sisters initially began discussions after a focus group of about 90 patients was asked what more could’ve been done during their cancer treatment. Many said that prayer wasn’t discussed, and felt that it should be.

Through the ensuing collaboration with the sisters, spiritual formation is now a key part of the journey at Memorial Hospital.

Sisters Michelle and Anita Louise also explained and gave a demonstration of Compassionate Healing, a service that is offered by volunteers to cancer patients at the hospital.

Memorial Hospital’s Kelly Clauss said, “Compassionate Healing has been a big gift to us at the Cancer Center. Patients look forward to it.”

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Comments? Questions? I welcome your feedback, and ideas for stories on how the sisters touch lives. Contact Greg Eckerle at geckerle@thedome.org, or at 812-367-1411, ext. 2636.