Dear Friends,

St. John’s has a commitment to the community; a promise to improve health care, help those who face barriers in their daily lives and provide breakthrough treatment that saves and rebuilds lives.

Sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, we are guided in our ministry by the Mercy heritage of special concern for the poor, sick and uneducated. We seek to promote good health and well-being, while at the same time we strive to relieve suffering and address its causes.

When Catholic health care and other not-for-profit health care organizations began in this country, there was a clear understanding they would provide community benefit and as a result, they would be granted a charitable tax exemption.

Today, however, the community service role of not-for-profit health care is not well understood by policymakers and the public. Therefore, there is a growing need for health care organizations like St. John’s to tell their community benefit stories. We are proud of the services we provide to the community.

This report explains why we commit to a structured, well-organized process of reporting community benefit. It takes a special look at our subsidy for Emergency Medical Services in our community and how these resources are saving lives across the Ozarks.

In communities large and small, residents rely on St. John’s for much more than medical care. We invite you to read this 2005-2006 Community Impact Report to learn more about our work and our commitment to continue improving the health status of the communities we serve.


Sincerely,

                    
Kim Day                          Dominic Meldi, M.D.
President / CEO              Board Chairman