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PLEASE NOTE, IN ADDITION TO THE D/B/A INCLUDED ON PAGE 1 OF THIS FORM 990, THIS ORGANIZATION ALSO FILED THE FOLLOWING FICTITIOUS NAME WITH THE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA AND OPERATES UNDER THE FOLLOWING: ST. LUKE'S CARE NOW. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's University Health Network (St. Luke's), founded in 1872, is a fully integrated, regional, not-for-profit network of more than 19,500 employees and 1,900 physicians providing services at 15 campuses and more than 350 outpatient sites. Annual admissions and observations exceed 92,000 and emergency room visits top 367,000. With annual net revenue of approximately $3.5 billion, the network's service area includes 11 counties: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Luzerne, Montgomery, Monroe and Schuylkill Counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Phillipsburg counties in New Jersey. St. Luke's, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, is committed to caring for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, educating our health care professionals and improving the overall health of the communities it serves. MISSION ----------- The mission of St. Luke's University Health Network is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers and, - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. OVERVIEW -------- St. Luke's provided total net community benefits of $407,777,195. Comprised of: Charity care and means tested programs (the difference between cost of care versus Medicaid reimbursement) of $185,171,861 plus other community health improvement services/cash and in-kind contributions, subsidized health services and health profession education of $222,605,334. St. Luke's strives endlessly to provide the highest quality care at the lowest cost and has been recognized by various rating organizations as a high value provider. The network operates on a conservative margin. Any excess revenue earned is continuously reinvested on behalf of the community to improving health care services. In FY 23, St. Luke's margin (the difference between the cost of providing care and revenue earned) was 2%. To put this into perspective that amounts to about 16 days of payroll. Caring for the sick and injured - improving quality and access in keeping with its mission, St. Luke's continuously works to improve both quality of care and access to care in all of the communities it serves. In recent years, both St. Luke's as a network, and its individual hospitals and programs, have received numerous, significant recognitions for quality. St. Luke's has made great strides in maintaining and improving access to health care services, especially in underserved rural areas and urban areas with low-income populations. NETWORK-WIDE HIGHLIGHTS ----------------------- St. Luke's University Health Network continued to expand throughout FY 23 through hospital expansions and the opening of new outpatient facilities. Meanwhile, the network continues to upgrade facilities and equipment and invest in technological advancements. Inpatient Services ------------------ St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus opened a new three-story addition on March 1, 2023, doubling the size of the hospital which opened in December 2019. The $79 million project adds more than 117,275 square-feet for a new Women & Babies Pavilion, expanded cancer services and room for future expansion. The first floor expands the infusion from 10 to 16 chairs, adds a new suite of oncology specialty practices - medical, surgical, radiation and gynecological - and includes a True Beam linear accelerator giving patients access to highly advanced radiation therapy services at this campus. The second-floor addition houses five labor and delivery rooms, 12 post-partum rooms, four triage rooms, six NICU beds and two C-section suites. In February 2023, just over three years after opening, Geisinger St. Luke's Hospital in Orwigsburg opened 20 additional private medical-surgical beds to accommodate the hospital's increased inpatient volumes. This brings the total bed count to 60, including 10 existing Intensive Care Unit beds. St. Luke's Quakertown Campus increased the number of beds for inpatient psychiatric services from 13 to 32 to meet increasing demand. With this addition, St. Luke's University Network's total inpatient psychiatric bed capacity is 202. In November 2022, St. Luke's Allentown Campus broke ground for a new Women and Babies Pavilion to meet the growing patient needs for these services at this hospital campus. The five-story, 85,000 square-foot tower is being built on the east side of the current hospital at 1736 Hamilton Boulevard. The expansion includes a Level 3 NICU with 10 NICU beds, nine Labor & Delivery rooms and 13 post-partum rooms. The project will cost approximately $50 million and is scheduled to open in February 2024. The St. Luke's Monroe Campus is also undergoing expansion. In April 2023, a "topping off" ceremony was held as the final steel beam was placed in the new four-story, 165,000-square-foot patient care tower. Upon completion, it will double the size of the existing hospital. Scheduled to open in 2024, it will house a 36-bed medical-surgical unit, additional operating and procedural space, expanded outpatient services, and a state-of-the-art interventional radiology suite. It also will house shell space for future services. In FY 22, St. Luke's became a member of the Children's Hospital Association and announced the opening of St. Luke's Children's Hospital based at the Network's Bethlehem Campus in Fountain Hill. The St. Luke's Children's Hospital includes St. Luke's 17-bed inpatient unit and eight-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus. St. Luke's newest acute care hospital, St. Luke's Carbon Campus opened in November 2021. The three-story, 80-patient-room, 160,000 square-feet facility is the largest of its kind in the history of Carbon County and the first new hospital built in the county in 65 years. It is the centerpiece of the network's 108-acre technologically advanced, multipurpose, rural medical and wellness complex. Emergency Services ------------------ St. Luke's operates Pennsylvania's largest trauma network and hospital-based EMS unit as well as 24 Care Now walk-in urgent care locations. Both St. Luke's Carbon Campus and St. Luke's Anderson Campus expanded their Emergency Departments in FY 23. St. Luke's Carbon Campus expanded the number of beds in its emergency department to 30 in October 2022. Each room has its own walls and doors, allowing for privacy, cardiac monitors and beds that can weigh patients for calculating prescription dosages. St. Luke's Anderson Campus opened a new Emergency Department in September 2022, increasing capacity from 31 to 45 beds and enabling more patients to be seen and treated quickly. The Department includes an expansive three-bed state-of-the-art Level II Adult Trauma Center. On September 1, 2021, St. Luke's Anderson Campus was accredited as a Level II Trauma Center by the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation. Effective November 1, 2021, St. Luke's Lehighton Campus and Geisinger St. Luke's Hospital became accredited Level IV trauma centers bringing St. Luke's total accredited trauma centers to seven and making St. Luke's the largest trauma network in Pennsylvania. Outpatient Services ------------------- St. Luke's University Health Network operates more than 350 outpatient sites, including the following recent additions: St. Luke's Warren Campus purchased the Hillcrest Plaza in December 2022. With more than 220,000 square feet at the shopping plaza, located at 755 Memorial Parkway in Phillipsburg, New Jersey, St. Luke's plans to expand its footprint and enhance its services in Western New Jersey. The. At the time of the purchase, St. Luke's owned 92,000 square feet of the plaza. Its services included the Coventry Family Practice and several specialty practices. There is also an outpatient lab and fitness and sports performance center. Gesinger St. Luke's Health Center-Pottsville opened in February 2023. The center offers primary care, physical therapy and diagnostic laboratory services in the vast, new facility located at 2650 Woodglen. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Near the end of last fiscal year, St. Luke's University Health Network opened the region's first and only freestanding facility dedicated entirely to Children on May 9, 2022. The new 37,500-square-foot pediatric specialty center is home to a growing team of pediatric specialists. Conveniently located at 5425 Lanark Road off Route 309 near I-78, the center was designed with Children and families in mind. Each floor has a unique theme - underwater, animals of the world and outer space - to make kids comfortable. The new home to St. Luke's Coopersburg Pediatrics, the center houses multiple pediatric specialties including nephrology, gastroenterology, cardiology, pulmonology, developmental, neurology, endocrinology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, pediatric primary care and pediatric nutrition. Behavioral Health ----------------- In FY 23, St. Luke's University Health Network continued to make significant investments in expanding availability of, and access to, high quality behavioral health services. With Penn Foundation, St. Luke's made significant progress toward the shared vision of maintaining and developing a full continuum of high-quality, integrated, and cost-effective behavioral health and substance use disorder services. Together, St. Luke's and Penn Foundation grew programs and expanded to new markets, improved access to care, provided career advancement opportunities, and recruited and retained quality staff, all of which are critical to keeping pace with the increasing demand for behavioral healthcare. In FY 23, St. Luke's and Penn Foundation aligned operations and developed an integrated behavioral health strategic plan to guide us as we worked to ensure seamless access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment throughout the Network. Today, St. Luke's behavioral health services delivers approximately 30 programs at 16 locations across the Network and through mobile services in the community. St. Luke's Penn Foundation is an Opioid Treatment Centers of Excellence, an Aetna Institute of Quality, and an Independence Blue Cross Blue Distinction Center for Substance Use Treatment and Recovery. Adult inpatient mental health services are offered at three campuses - St. Luke's Sacred Heart, St. Luke's Lehighton and St. Luke's Quakertown. Adolescent inpatient mental health services are offered at St. Luke's Easton Campus. Inpatient drug and alcohol services are offered at two locations and include three levels of care: - Medical Detoxification 16-bed unit located at the St. Luke's Sacred Heart campus in Allentown and managed by triple board-certified physicians (Medical Toxicology, Addiction Medicine, Emergency Medicine) who manage withdrawal from substance use disorder and underlying medical conditions - Detoxification and Inpatient Rehabilitation 55-bed unit located at the St. Luke's Penn Foundation campus in Sellersville and provides individuals who are unable to abstain from substances with a safe, structured environment to begin their recovery. The Recovery Center include 16-licensed detoxification beds for individuals withdrawing from alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines, and other substances. A variety of therapeutic activities are also delivered to individuals who desire treatment. - Outpatient mental health services for children, adolescents, and adults include individual, couples, family, or group counseling, psychiatric evaluations, and medication management. Outpatient drug and alcohol services include counseling, intensive outpatient program, Mobile Engagement Services, BCARES/Warm Handoff programs, medication-assisted treatment and family consultation. Prevention programs and education such as Camp Crossroads, Family Education, and school-based presentations are also provided. Residential and rehabilitation programs provide personalized support in accessing services and resources, coordinating healthcare, and working towards career, educational and other life goals. Further north, St. Luke's Lehighton Campus opened the state's first behavioral health walk-in outpatient center during the summer of 2022. Open every day, patients 14 and older can seek help with conditions such as anxiety, panic attacks, depression, grief, thoughts of self-harm, mood swings, anger and school. Patients must come willingly. St. Luke's Penn Foundation received a grant for more than $530,000 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to enhance veteran suicide prevention services in Carbon County. Carbon County is home to 8% of Pennsylvania's veterans and has the highest suicide rate among veterans in the state. Since the program launched in the spring of 2023, it has served 34 veterans and their families, Dedicated to Advancing Medical Education ---------------------------------------- Temple/St. Luke Medical School is a four-year regional medical campus that works collaboratively and in affiliation with Temple's Lewis Katz School of Medicine in Philadelphia. It is the preeminent teaching hospital in central-eastern Pennsylvania. In 2006, the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University (LKSOM) and St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) established a clinical campus for third- and fourth-year students at St. Luke's hospital. In 2011, St. Luke's senior leadership decided to join LKSOM in creating a regional medical school campus: Temple/St. Luke's. The inaugural Temple/St. Luke's class started in August of 2011 and graduated in May of 2015. In August 2020, the partnership between LKSOM Temple University and SLUHN expanded such that incoming students can now complete all four years of medical school at St. Luke's Bethlehem. There are presently 158 medical students enrolled in the medical school with a projected enrollment of 40 students per class, or 160 students, by August 2024. On May 5, 2023, 30 Temple/St. Luke's School of Medicine students graduated at a ceremony at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, of which 17 graduates will continue their education at St. Luke's for residency. In addition, St. Luke's continuously expands its post-graduate medical training programs. We currently have more than 440 residents and fellows enrolled in more than 45 accredited programs, increasing from 27 in FY 18. By 2027, we expect to have 60 fellowships and residencies. New programs added recently include a clinical neuro-physiology fellowship and pediatrics, sleep medicine fellowship and diagnostic radiology residency programs. It is expected that at least a third of these residents and fellows will continue to work at St. Luke's following the completion of their programs - improving both the quality of and access to, care in the region, well into the future. The majority of St. Luke's Graduate Medical Education Programs has been located at St. Luke's Anderson Campus since July 2019 and will have continued growth. St. Luke's Anderson Campus currently has 181 residents with accredited graduate medical education programs in clinical neurophysiology, dermatology, endocrinology, emergency medicine, family medicine, hematology/oncology, internal medicine, neurology, otolaryngology head & neck surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, sleep medicine, transitional year and vascular neurology. Other training programs are currently in the developmental stages. St. Luke's Anderson Campus also offers rotations for surgical residents, OB/GYN residents and medical students. In October 2020, St. Luke's Graduate Medical Education (GME) Department secured two high-level federal grants to educate and train a new generation of physicians specializing in rural medicine. The funds, issued by HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration) will prepare physicians for practice in small-town settings and help strengthen rural communities whose residents have difficulty accessing health care services. These grants have further enhanced the existing Family Medicine Rural Residency Training Program and helped to establish a new and novel Psychiatry Rural Residency Training Program. St. Luke's GME Department researched the availability of these grants with specific rural regions in mind, namely Carbon and Schuylkill counties and areas surrounding St. Luke's Miners, Carbon and Lehighton Campuses and Geisinger St. Luke's Hospital. These counties, like so many rural regions in the country, have long suffered from a lack of physicians and services, necessitating the need for patients to travel long distances for quality health care, especially in specialties like family medicine and psychiatry. The new Family Medicine Residency Program at St. Luke's Miners Campus will have a significant positive impact on health care in this and other rural areas, by providing post-graduate training for physicians wanting to practice family care in a rural setting. |
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The RTT will be an integrated program with St. Luke's family medicine residency - Warren, located in Phillipsburg, NJ and under the direction of Program Director Thomas McGinley, MD. The three-year program will have two residents in each year and welcomed its first class in July 2022. The residents will spend three months in the first year in Tamaqua, and nine months in Tamaqua in both the second and third years. Only 11 health systems in the country were awarded the psychiatry rural residency grant. The 49-bed St. Luke's Miners Campus will be the primary teaching site of a new psychiatry-rural training track residency program. The new program began in July 2022 with a class of two residents per year (eight total). St. Luke's has committed to build a new Rural Outpatient Clinic in Schuylkill County to expand access to care for the community and to train residents for their outpatient continuity experience. The network is also affiliated with the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine other medical and podiatric schools. SLUHN is accredited by the Pennsylvania Commission for Continuing Medical Education to sponsor CME programs. The network sponsors approximately CME programs each year, with more than 25,000 physicians, advance practice clinicians, nurses and other learners attending. Nursing Education ----------------- Nursing education is also a priority. St. Luke's operates the nation's longest continuously operating School of Nursing, established in 1884. The 20-month accelerated program features 900 hours of clinical experience within St. Luke's University Health Network as well as other local acute care, chronic care and community agencies. The school offers both a traditional day program and an evening and weekend program - ideal for people who are working or caring for children or aging parents during the day. More than 150 applications are typically received for each incoming class of 100 students. There are currently 345 enrolled students. Typically, approximately 80% of nursing school students has been hired by network entities upon graduation. Currently 50% of the students are employees while they are in school, and benefitting from tuition reimbursement. Beginning August 2022, we started to offer eligible St. Luke's employees tuition coverage upfront. This represents a $26,000 value. Students at St. Luke's School of Nursing are also provided with a laptop free of charge to use for coursework. Additionally, St. Luke's partners with Northampton Community College to cover up front the cost of prerequisite classes for our employees. Employees must still apply for the St. Luke's School of Nursing program, follow application requirements and be accepted. Also, St. Luke' provides a residency program for new nurses. Classes focus on decision-making, critical thinking, clinical knowledge and quality, as well as emotional support. St. Luke's nurses engage in research on quality improvement innovations supported by the network center for nursing excellence, the registered nurse residency program, the nurse specialty fellowship programs and the office of clinical trials and research. In FY 22, Moravian University announced a partnership with St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN). This partnership calls for the development of a special RN to program pathway that allows prospective students to complete one application for both the St. Luke's School of Nursing and the Helen S. Breidegam School of Nursing and Public Health, promoting a seamless progression to the Moravian Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. In May of 2022, the St. Luke's School of Nursing's (SON) diploma nursing program announced that was granted continuing accreditation by the accreditation commission for education in nursing (ACEN) through fall 2029. This was a continued accreditation. The ACEN accreditation process included site visits and public input and had been ongoing over the past year. That the accreditation is good through the fall 2029 speaks to the quality of the SON program and the faculty and students who are part of it and the support of the entire St. Luke's Network. In January of 2024, St. Luke's received a $1.4 million grant to increase the number and capacity of nursing students to address the health care needs and improve patient outcomes of rural and medically underserved populations in Carbon and Schuylkill counties. Advanced Practitioners ---------------------- In FY 23, approximately 360 advanced practice students, such as nurse practitioners, physician assistants and nurse anesthetists, rotated through various St. Luke's University Health Network specialties. Over 860 clinical placements were shared amongst these students. St. Luke's provides clinical experiences for the certified registered nurse anesthetist program from Cedar Crest College and La Salle University and the certified registered nurse practitioner programs from Cedar Crest, DeSales University, Moravian College and Drexel University. The network also offers advanced practitioner fellowships in emergency medicine and critical care, hosts physician assistant programs from DeSales University, King's College, Drexel University, Arcadia University and the Pennsylvania State University, and offers a physician assistant observer program. Allied Health Education ----------------------- SLUHN serves as a major training site for allied health professions. More than 560 students representing 80+ colleges, universities and technical institutes annually spend 123,300 hours at St. Luke's. Allied health professionals work in teams to facilitate functionality of the healthcare system through provision of a range of diagnostic, technical, therapeutic and direct patient care and support services. Allied health professionals train in many disciplines, including athletic training, behavioral health, cardiology, dietetic, lab, medical assistants, MRI, nuclear medicine, phlebotomy, physical/occupational/speech therapy, radiology and respiratory care and social work. Students from more than 80 colleges, universities and technical institutes complete clinical training rotations and practicums in the network. SLUHN also trains students in surgical technology in its own school of surgical technology and master-level students in the Lehigh Valley's first and only athletic training residency. Pastoral Care Education ----------------------- St. Luke's Bethlehem maintains a chaplaincy residency and intern program accredited by the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc. Pharmacy Education Programs --------------------------- The network maintains a pharmacy residency, which is a one-year training program for pharmacy graduates to gain additional clinical skills and knowledge in a health system setting. The residents complete rotations in a variety of inpatient and outpatient care areas, including internal medicine, critical care, pediatrics and oncology. Additionally, the pharmacy provides introductory and advance practice pharmacy experiences to students from University, University of the Sciences - Philadelphia College of pharmacy and University of Pittsburgh. These experiences are offered at St. Luke's Allentown, St. Luke's Anderson and St. Luke's Bethlehem Campuses. Hospital Administration Education Internships --------------------------------------------- The network hosts interns from various colleges and universities who receive training in hospital management and administration in ambulatory care and inpatient settings. Clinical Trials and Research ---------------------------- SLUHN's physicians are involved with approximately 200 clinical research trials and studies - a majority focused on cancer, cardiac, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery and trauma. Improving the Overall Health of the Community --------------------------------------------- Every St. Luke's campus is committed to improving the overall health and enhancing the quality of life for the residents of the communities they serve. The individual campus reports provide many examples of how St. Luke's accomplishes this. In addition to the ways discussed previously, the list below provides highlights. In FY 23, St. Luke's: - Operated medical clinics to serve lower income patients and those with inadequate insurance coverage. - Provided mobile medical services to school children. Services included physicals, adolescent health assessments, vision services, insurance referrals and nutrition counseling. - Provided mobile dental services to school children. - Provided a wide range of health screenings at numerous community events. - Conducted classes on life-saving topics including first aide and life support. - Improved literacy by maintaining free lending libraries at various campuses and participated in school literacy programs. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
- Encouraged physical activity through the use of the D&L trails and other walking/running/biking paths and providing and supporting numerous walks and runs. - Encouraged healthy eating through the farm to school program that provides school children hands-on learning about nutrition and gardening, employee access to locally grown produce through the expansion of the community supported agriculture (CSA), as well as numerous educational programs that educated patients how to improve their health through healthy eating. - Worked with numerous media outlets to educate the community about health issues. - Held national drug take back day events, where unused drugs were collected. - Held food and clothing drives to benefit community members in need. - Outfitted approximately 150 needy children in the Bethlehem area with coats, hats, gloves and scarves provided, with an estimated value of $80 for each child. The annual philanthropy project has been in existence for more than a quarter century and all funding is raised through donations by St. Luke's employees. Recipients are identified by area elementary schools, the Salvation Army and St. Luke's-affiliated assistance programs. Supporting the Local Economy ---------------------------- Although St. Luke's is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, the presence of its hospitals and other facilities provides an indirect benefit to local school districts and municipalities. St. Luke's is the largest, or one of the largest, employers in many of the communities where its hospitals are located. In FY 23 alone, St. Luke's paid $1.501 billion in wages and salaries to approximately 19,500 employees. In turn, these employees paid local income tax on their earnings. Most of these employees live in or near the city, town, borough or township; county and school district, as their place of employment and thus support the local tax base through the payment of property taxes and local income taxes. In addition, St. Luke's stimulates the local economy through the purchase of supplies and equipment, and purchased services, as well as the goods and services purchased by its employees. Also, maintenance of these hospitals and other network facilities - and construction of new ones, such as our newest hospitals, St. Luke's Carbon Campus - generate work for contractors, architects, designers, metal workers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, painters and many more craftsmen. Furthermore, the circulation of hospital dollars has a ripple impact in local communities. In fact, the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) estimates that in FY 22 (latest available report) the effect of the hospital community on local economies in the Lehigh Valley region - comprising Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill counties - was including the ripple effect, $10 billion, and hospital salary contributions was $3 billion. Hospitals were the top employers in Lehigh County. Furthermore, hospitals in Pennsylvania delivered $9 billion in community benefit in areas such as enhancing community health, providing charity care to patients in need, training and educating the next generation of health care professionals, conducting lifesaving medical research, and absorbing costs associated with caring for millions of Pennsylvanians covered by Medicare and Medicaid. ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK AWARDS AND RECOGNITION ============================================================ In FY 23, the St. Luke's Hospitals have achieved numerous awards and recognition associated with the quality of services provided, including: PINC AIT 100 Top Hospitals Awards* In 2023, healthcare data company Premier Inc. acquired the 100 Top Hospitals program from IBM Watson HealthT. The rankings, which were started in 1993 by Truven Health Analytics, continued by IBM Watson Health and now produced by Premier Inc.'s PINC AIT, use a balanced scorecard approach comprised of key measures of hospital performance: inpatient and extended care quality, operational efficiency, financial health and customer experience. PINC AI has identified the top hospitals from a rigorous evaluation of 2,644 short-term, acute care, non-federal U.S. hospitals. As compared to their peers, the highest performing hospitals on the 100 Top Hospitals list had lower inpatient mortality rates and fewer patient complications, fewer healthcare-associated infections, lower 30-day readmission rates, shorter lengths of stay, higher scores on patient ratings of their overall hospital experience and lower episode-of-care expenses for the in-hospital through aftercare process. In 2023, the St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus (Bethlehem Allentown and Sacred Heart Campus) was ranked as the #4 Major Teaching Hospital in the country. This marked the ninth time in a row and the eleventh time overall that the St. Luke's Bethlehem campus has been designated as a 100 Top Hospital. Also, in 2023, the St. Luke's Anderson Campus was ranked as the #5 Teaching Hospital in the country. The 2023 award represented the fifth time in a row that the St. Luke's Anderson Campus has been designated as a 100 Top Hospital. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare Ratings - 5 and 4 Stars St. Luke's Hospitals have received the highest possible scores - five and four stars - in the 2023 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare analysis. No other health system in the Lehigh Valley earned five- or four-star ratings. CMS's Hospital Compare results were based on more than 100 quality measures collected from 4,000 Medicare-certified hospitals. The quality measures spanned multiple categories, including mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, effectiveness and timeliness of care and efficient use of medical imaging. The Leapfrog Group "A" Ratings and Top Teaching Hospitals As of Fall 2023, the majority of St. Luke's Hospitals were awarded an "A" for their commitment to keeping patients safe and meeting the highest safety standards in the country. Six St. Luke's Hospitals (Allentown, Anderson, Bethlehem, Carbon, Easton and Warren) were named Leapfrog Top Hospitals. Only 132 hospitals in the U.S. and nine in Pennsylvania were named Leapfrog Top Hospitals. Out of the 27 Leapfrog Top Ambulatory Surgery Centers in the U.S., only two were named in Pennsylvania: St. Luke's Endoscopy Centers at Buxmont and Twin Rivers. Top Workplace in Nation and in Region by Forbes and the Morning Call St. Luke's University Health Network is the top-ranked Lehigh Valley-based employer in Forbes Magazine's ranking of employers in Pennsylvania, which was published in August 2023. Forbes partnered with market research firm Statista to survey 70,000 workers at companies (minimum of 500 employees) in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Participants were asked if they would recommend their employer to others, and to evaluate their employer based on working conditions, diversity, compensation packages, potential for development, company image and more. In July 2023, Forbes named St. Luke's one of America's Best Employers for Women, one of only two healthcare organizations in Pennsylvania to receive the designation. In a separate survey conducted in partnership with The Morning Call and other newspapers, St. Luke's was named a Top Workplaces 2023 nationally, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. St. Luke's was the only healthcare institution in Pennsylvania and the third-highest ranked health care entity in the nation to be deemed a Top Workplace in 2023. Of the 42,000 organizations that participated nationally, only a fraction earn a Top Workplaces designation. The list is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a confidential third-party survey administered by Energage LLC, an employee engagement technology company. The survey measures 15 culture drivers critical to any organization's success, including alignment, execution, and connection Society for Vascular Surgery's Vascular Quality Initiative (SVS VQI) Highest Ratings St. Luke's Bethlehem and Allentown campuses received the highest possible star rating for active participation in the SVS VQI Registry Participation Program. These St. Luke's campuses are the only facilities to receive the highest star rating from SVS VQI in the Mid Atlantic region, which includes Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Washington, D.C. Operating under the Society for Vascular Surgery, the Vascular Quality Initiative is composed of 14 registries containing demographic, clinical, procedural and outcomes data from more than 670,000 vascular procedures performed nationwide and in Canada. The mission of VQI is to improve the quality, safety, effectiveness and cost of vascular healthcare. |
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Newsweek World's Best Hospital St. Luke's Bethlehem and Allentown campuses together have been named one of the "World's Best" hospitals by Newsweek magazine for the fifth year in a row. Of 414 American hospitals to make the list, 27 are based in Pennsylvania. St. Luke's was ranked seventh overall in the state and is the top ranked hospital from the Lehigh Valley on the list. To create this ranking, Newsweek and Statista Inc., a global market research and consumer data company, designed a rigorous methodology that evaluated hospitals using data from three sources: (1) hospital recommendations from peers, including an online survey conducted among tens of thousands of doctors, health care professionals and hospital managers in 28 countries; (2) patient experience through surveys of patient satisfaction with hospitals; and (3) medical Key Performance Indicators (e.g. data on quality of treatment, hygiene measures). Stage 7 Designation on the HIMSS Analytics Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model SLUHN was the first network in the Lehigh Valley to achieve Stage 7 designation on the HIMSS Analytics Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model. Less than 5 percent of U.S. hospitals have reached Stage 7, the highest stage on HIMSS Analytics' scale. HIMSS Analytics, a subsidiary of the Health Information Management Systems Society, is a healthcare research and advisory firm for healthcare organizations and governments worldwide. Following a rigorous review process, HIMSS Analytics grades hospitals on their application of electronic medical records. The Stage 7 designation recognizes St. Luke's extensive and creative use of electronic medical records to establish better service and higher quality care at lower costs. Hospital and Health Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) Achievement Awards Program HAP honors hospitals and health systems each year for their innovation, creativity, and commitment to patient care through its Achievement Awards program. SLUHN continues to hold the distinction of winning the most HAP Achievement Awards of any health system in the state, having won 23 awards since 2010. ST. LUKE'S QUALITY AWARDS ======================== SLUHN and its affiliates have received more than 200 awards since 1997, as well as additional national and state recognition for various achievements. These include: National Awards: - St. Luke's University Health Network- named PINC AIT #1 Major Teaching Hospital (2021) - St. Luke's University Health Network- named PINC AIT 15 Top Health Systems category (2021) - St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus - named PINC AIT 100 Top Hospital- major teaching hospital category (2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2006, 1997) in FY 23, named #4 among the 20 best major teaching hospitals in 2023. - St. Luke's Anderson Campus was named #2 of the 15 Best Teaching Hospitals (2022) - St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (SLQ) - named PINC AIT 100 Top Hospital in small community hospitals category (2019, 2016) - St. Luke's Miners Hospital (SLM)- named PINC AIT 100 Top Hospital in small community hospitals category (2021) - St. Luke's Anderson (SLRA) - named PINC AIT 100 Top Hospital in medium community hospitals category (2021, 2020, 2019) - Named Newsweek- World's Best Hospitals (2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019) - Selected as Newsweek America's best maternity hospitals in 2022 - Received the American heart association/American stroke association's: silver plus award; gold plus award; honor roll elite; honor roll elite plus - Named Premier PINC AIT 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals (2023, 2022, 2014, 2012, 2003, 2002,2001, 1999) - Recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as a level 3 oncology medical home for delivering, patient-centered care and clinical quality while providing focused care management to patients and family members. - Designated by Blue Cross Blue Shield as a Blue Distinction Center + for maternity care, bariatrics and cardiac. Blue Distinction Specialty Care + is a national designation program which recognizes healthcare organizations for providing care that is not only high quality but also low cost. - Recognized as a Hospital & Health Networks Most Wired Award Winner (2023 2022, 2021, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2014, 2013) - HIMSS Davies Award of Excellence (2023, 2022, 2021, 2020) - CMS 5-star rating (highest)- (2023,2022, 2017) - Healthgrades's 100 best hospitals (2020- 2023) - Awarded by Healthgrades as America's top 250 best hospitals award, top 5% in the nation consistently delivering clinical quality (2017-2023) - Leapfrog safety A rating (highest) - (2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017). In FY 22, all St. Luke's University Health Network hospitals achieved this rating. - Leapfrog Top Hospital - (2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018) Leapfrog safety grade a. In FY 22, all St. Luke's University Health Network hospitals achieved this rating. State Awards - Pennsylvania: - Received 23 Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) achievement awards - most ever healthcare system wins in state of Pennsylvania. - Forbes America's best-in-state employers (2022, 2021, 2019) Other outstanding achievements: St. Luke's hospitals have consistently been named by the Morning Call and Times News newspapers as a Readers' Choice award recipient for being the best: - Hospital - Cancer Center - Cardiology - Dermatologist - Family Doctor - Home Health - Hospital/Health Network - Kidney Dialysis - MRI/Diagnostic Imaging - Obstetrician - Orthopedic Care - Pediatrician - Physical Therapist - Place to Have a Baby - Speech Therapy - Sports Medicine - Urgent Care - Weight Loss Center - Best Cosmetic Surgeon (Jonathan Lam) - St. Luke's Heart Surgery Program was named as one of 17 top performing hospitals in the northeast region by consumer reports in 2018 community health report. DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY HEALTH ================================= St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's partners with local schools, civic organizations, and community resources to improve the health of the residents. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. - Improving Access to Care - Preventing Chronic Disease - Improving Mental and Behavioral Health The individual reports provide more detail. Network Wide Sponsorships ======================= - 9/11 Heroes Run - Alpha Braves - Alvernia University - American Cancer Society - American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - American Legion Riders - Chapter 927 / VALOR Clinic Foundation - Angel 34 Foundation - Battle Borne - Black Square Group - Bloom for Women - Bo Tkach Foundation - BOC - Boy Scouts - Boyertown Area School District - Brandywine Heights Area School District - Brother 4 Brother - Camelot for Children |
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- Cancer Action Network - Cancer Support Community - Carbon Adventure Racing Charities - Catholic Charities - Chamber's Veterans and Military Council - Children's Developmental Program - Collaborative Autism Movement - Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley - Community Options - Conrad Weiser HS - D11Sports.com - Delaware Valley Regional High School - District XI - DNL Concessions - Dock Mennonite Academy - Dream Come True - Dylan and Gavin - EC/BCLS Training Center - Events to End Pediatric Tumors - Girl Scouts - Grace Montessori School - Greater Lehigh Valley Athletics, Inc - Grow a Pair - Gujarati Samaj of Lehigh Valley - Habitat for Humanity - Harvest Full of Hope - Headstrong Foundation - HWSAA - ImPACT Applications, Inc. - Jewish Day School of the Lehigh Valley - Jewish Family Service - Journeymen Wrestling - Judith Adele Agentis - Justin Sheftel Memorial Fund - Keystone Athletic - Kick It Contests - Kolbe Academy - Krysta Hankee Memorial Fund - Laundry on Linden - Lehigh Elementary School - Lehigh Township Police Dept - Lehigh Valley Basketball Club - Lehigh Valley Economic Development (LVEDC) - Lehigh Valley Food and Wine Festival - Lehigh Valley Philanthropy Institute - Lehigh Valley Rodeo - Lehigh Valley Senior All-Star Classic Committee - Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club - Lehigh Valley Youth Soccer League - Live Like Brent - LV Aging in Place - LV Chamber - MADE Strength - Mahanoy Area School District - Marian Catholic School District - Meals on Wheels - Merissa L. Frye Small Cell Cervial Cancer Memorial Foundation - Metro Decorators, Inc - Mikayla's Voice - Miller-Keystone Blood Center - Miracle League of LV - Nativity BVM High School - Nightingale Awards - Northampton Area School District - Northampton Community College - Northeast Pa Manufacturers and Employers (MAEA) - PA Association for Infant Mental Health (PA-AIMH) - Pancreatic Cancer Hope Foundation - PAPeer Support - PAPRS (PA Assoc of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services) - PBS - PCEA Conference - PCFLV - Pennridge High School Theater Arts - Recovery Partnership - Rep Ryan Mackenzie - Salem Christian School - Salisbury Area School District - Salisbury High School - Salvation Army - Sassey Massey Smile Foundation - She Nailed it - Special Hockey of the Lehigh Valley - St. Luke's Community Ambassador - Sweatshirt of Hope - Sync Recovery Community - Team Fermin - Team Luke's Fore a Cure - Team Pennsylvania - Valley Youth House - VAST (Valley Against Sex Trafficking) - Vigilance Hose Fire Department/Nazareth Fire - Volunteer Center - Watts Baggs USA INC. - Weatherly Area School District - Wescoe Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation - Whitehall-Coplay School District - Wildlands Conservancy - Wrestlers in Business Network - Yasso/Rothrock - Zero Prostate Cancer ========================================================================== GEISINGER ST. LUKE'S CAMPUS --------------------------- Geisinger St. Luke's Campus is the first new acute-care, non-replacement hospital Schuylkill County has seen in 90 years. Comprised of three stories and 130,091 square feet, the $100-million hospital building has 60 private patient rooms, including 10 critical care beds, and the ability to add 20 more medical-surgical rooms in the future. To promote healing, the rooms are spacious and beautifully decorated. The hospital also features state-of-the-art operating and procedure rooms, a helipad, a large and efficient emergency room and modern medical technologies from GE Healthcare. Opening in November 2019, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus was the first joint venture in Pennsylvania history of two health systems coming together to co-own a facility. The hospital is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an Internal Revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. Moreover, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS revenue ruling 69-545: 1) Geisinger St. Luke's Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) Geisinger St. Luke's Campus operates an active emergency room for all persons; which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; 3) Geisinger St. Luke's Campus maintains an open medical staff, by invitation only, with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of Geisinger St. Luke's Campus rests with its Board of Trustees. This board is comprised of a majority of executive leadership from both Geisinger and St. Luke's University Health Network as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff and community representatives; and 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care programs and activities. The operations of Geisinger St. Luke's Campus, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of Geisinger St. Luke's Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual, nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of Geisinger St. Luke's Campus is to care for the sick and injured and improve our community's health regardless of a patient's ability to pay. Vision ====== The vision of Geisinger St. Luke's Campus is to be the preferred hospital in Schuylkill County for high-quality, cost-effective care and outstanding service. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers and, - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Overview ======== On November 20, 2019, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus opened its doors to the community. Becoming the 10th hospital in the St. Luke's University Health Network, the new hospital provides acute inpatient and outpatient medical and surgical care. The campus has an annual capacity for 3,450 inpatient and observation admissions and has a 15-bed emergency department with an annual capacity for 25,000 visits. In FY 23, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus provided care for 3,974 admissions and observations, 25,534 emergency department visits and 52,766 outpatient visits. From the day it opened, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus has been embraced by the public. In the first year of operations, the hospital received the Press Ganey guardian of excellence award for inpatient and emergency room care and the Republican Herald's readers' choice best hospital award. The Geisinger St. Luke's Campus continues to be successful due to the support of both the St. Luke's University Health Network and the Geisinger Health System. Another major investment in the Geisinger St. Luke's Campus was a three-floor, 37,500-square-foot medical office building located at 1165 Centre Turnpike, on the hospital campus. The $8 million building opened in June 2020 and expanded the breadth of offerings at Geisinger St. Luke's Campus to include cardiology, orthopedics, spine & pain, sports medicine, pulmonary, gastroenterology, general surgery, gynecology, urology, nephrology, gynecologic oncology, women's imaging, 3D mammography and DEXA scan (bone density scanning). In FY 23, the Geisinger St. Luke's Campus added 20 private rooms at a cost of $11 million, Fast Breast MRI and planned for the opening of the Interventional Radiology Suite in July 2023. The Geisinger St. Luke's Campus Breast Center, located in the Medical Office Building, includes the most advanced, computer-aided software to help in diagnosing breast anomalies and the latest digital and 3d mammography equipment from GE Healthcare. The center is equipped with Sensorysuite to provide a calmer, interactive mammogram experience and the region's first Pristina with Duetatm mammography, a patient-assisted compression device which gives patients a sense of control during their mammograms. |
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Geisinger St. Luke's Campus specialty services include: - Cardiology - Critical Care Anesthesia - Emergency Services - ENT - Endoscopies - Gastroenterology - Gynecology - Gynecology Oncology - Infectious Disease - Inpatient Renal Dialysis with CRRT - Interventional Radiology - Nephrology - Neurology - Occupational Medicine - Orthopedics, Joint and Muscle Disorders - Pain Management - Palliative Care - Podiatry - Primary Care - Pulmonary - Radiology (Advanced, Interventional) - Spine & Pain - Sports Medicine - Surgery (General, Specialty, Laparoscopic and Robotic) - Urology - Vascular Services - Weight Management - Women's Imaging Center Geisinger St. Luke's Campus is service oriented with a goal to reduce patient and family stress and anxiety and to provide a calm and reassuring environment by meeting, and often exceeding, their personal needs. Softer lighting is used in the hallways and the dcor conveys relaxing earth tones. Available amenities include flat screen smart televisions, free WIFI service and a recliner and comfortable sofa bed in every room. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ===================== The Community Health Department's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. The Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) is conducted every three years as part of the patient protection and affordable care act. Primary and secondary data are compiled to support the St. Luke's University Health Network. These priority areas were determined based on the significant impact of the social determinants of health and provide a guide for our programs and other health initiatives that support our patients, care-workers, and communities. Findings from the 2022 CHNA highlight the differences within communities and systems that contribute to the prevalence of disease and poor health outcomes that contribute to a lack of optimal health for socially disadvantaged populations. Key informant interviews were held in the winter of 2021 and community forums with 307 local community members were held in the spring of 2021. 11,000 community members completed CHNA surveys in the summer of 2021 in community forums, and over 350 community members were engaged in CHNA state of the community meetings in the fall of 2022. St. Luke's network-wide and campus-specific CHNA reports, findings, implementation plans, and implementation updates can be found on our website. Overall network assessment results highlight four main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives. Priority areas identified by the CHNA for 2022-2025 include: - Access to Care - Preventing Chronic Disease - Mental and Behavioral Health - COVID-19 Geisinger St. Luke's Campus and St. Luke's Miners Campus-specific evidence-based initiatives and connection to care partnerships: Geisinger St. Luke's St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) and the Geisinger St. Luke's (GSL) Campus conduct a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's partners with local schools, civic organizations and community resources to improve the health of the residents of Schuylkill County and the surrounding area. The GSL campus supports CHNA priority areas that are identified within the campus service area by collecting and analyzing data and community input. Based on the identified needs and priorities, each campus develops plans and programs to improve the health of those in the communities. The GSL Community CHNA findings meeting was held on September 29, 2022, and engaged 38 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: Connections to Care: St. Luke's and GSL partner with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. Information Technology, Quality, Case Management and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health, the Rural Health Centers and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. This platform, as well as United Way's 211, are tools to assist our community members, patients and staff to connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. GSL Community Health Workers (CHW) and school-based staff provide services to students and families at Child Development Head Start and Tamaqua Area School District (TASD). The partnership between St. Luke's Department of Community Health and Child Development Head Start began in 2013 through the St. Luke's Miners Campus. When Geisinger St. Luke's opened in 2019 we were able to further prioritize our partnership by embedding a CHW at Child Development Head Start, which serves all school districts in Schuylkill County. These efforts have measurably improved access and services to families in need. In collaboration with the St. Luke's Rural Health Centers and with support from CHWs, connections to care were established to improve access to school physicals, vaccinations, education and resources. The Star Community Health Dental Van partnered with 10 local schools during FY 23 providing 1,936 visits, 3,170 sealants and 478 restorations. School-based coordinators at TASD identified and connected students to care when they were in need of physical, behavioral or social services. Schuylkill Child Development Head Start and a GSL CHW embedded in the centers partnered during FY 23 to provide support services for young families in need. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY 23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. Additionally, literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at local Schuylkill County Schools. |
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Preventing Chronic Disease: St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated 42 shares of fresh fruits and vegetables from Geisinger St. Luke's to Child Development and the Orwigsburg Food Pantry. Geisinger St. Luke's employees provided monthly volunteer support to the Orwigsburg Food Pantry. The Rural Health Center food access partnership was implemented to improve patient intake of fresh produce. The Rural Health Centers distributed 18 bags of fresh produce weekly in Tamaqua to help support healthy eating habits. The VALOR Foundation Stand Down Lansford and the Tamaqua Hunger Coalition partnership were additional food access points. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY 23 at the Geisinger in collaboration with Schuylkill Substance Use Task Force and Schuylkill REACH (i.e., Recovery, Education, Advocacy, Community Health). The Department of Community Health worked with partners to deliver a Community Stigma Presentation for Carbon and Schuylkill and 106 participants attended. Narcan Education and Distribution was provided during FY 23 to 169 community members in Carbon and Schuylkill Counties. Safe Medication Disposal boxes continued to provide a space to dispose of unwanted medicines. During FY 23, 103.1 pounds of unused medication at Geisinger St. Luke's were safely disposed. Weekly positive messaging and resource newsletters were distributed via school email blasts and social media. A Rural Health Center Social Worker provided support services and connections to mental and behavioral health services for students, families and community members. Partnership Collaborations: - Schuylkill County Mental Health and Drug and Alcohol - Clinical Outcomes Group (COGI) - Schuylkill Substance Use Task Force - East Central Area Health Education Council (AHEC) - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) - Lehigh Carbon Community College SHINE program - Child Development Head Start - Helping Harvest Food Bank - Schuylkill Child Development - Schuylkill County Nurse Family Partnership - Schuylkill Suicide Prevention Task Force - Schuylkill County Salvation Army - Schuylkill United Way - Star Community Health connection to services including dental vans at local schools - Tamaqua Community Partnership (including Tamaqua Hunger Coalition, Hope and Coffee, Tamaqua Community Arts Center) Sponsorship =========== In FY 23, Geisinger St. Luke's provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: - Alvernia University - Avenues Foundation - Blue Mountain School District - CK Running, LLC (Benefits the Wounded Warriors) - Diakon Child Family & Community - Eagle Foundation - Fleetwood Area School District - Geisinger - Hawk Mountain Council- Boy Scouts - Kutztown University - Marian Catholic School District - Marsico Sports Media LLC - Nativity School - North Schuylkill School District - Oley Valley School District - Our Town Foundation - Pottsville Area School District - Pottsville Library - Pottstown Broadcast Co. - Reading Area School District - Reading Royals - Schuylkill Chorale Society - Schuylkill County's Vision - United Way Day of Caring In addition, Geisinger St. Luke's Campus provides healthy, low-cost meals for seniors. Also, the Campus participates in PennDOT's Adopt a Highway Program. Volunteers ========== In FY 23, 36 Geisinger St. Luke's Campus volunteers provided 3,013 volunteer hours. ========================================================================= ST. LUKE'S ANDERSON CAMPUS ---------------------------- St. Luke's Hospital Anderson Campus is a not-for-profit, 215-licensed bed acute care hospital located and providing care primarily to residents of Northampton and Monroe counties in Pennsylvania and Warren County in New Jersey. St. Luke's Anderson Campus is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Anderson Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Anderson Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Anderson Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay; 2) St. Luke's Anderson Campus operates an active emergency room for all persons; which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; and 3) St. Luke's Anderson Campus maintains an open medical staff, with privileges available to all qualified physicians. 4) Control of St. Luke's Anderson Campus rests with its Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of St. Luke's Health Network, inc., d.b.a. St. Luke's University Health Network. Both boards comprise a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff. 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care; programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Anderson Campus, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Anderson Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's Anderson Campus is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health, and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers, and - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Overview ======== The 215-bed Anderson Campus celebrated its 12th year on November 11, 2023. When the campus opened, it was the first new, full-service, acute-care hospital in Pennsylvania in 40 years. It consisted of three buildings, employed 280 employees and had an annual revenue of $60M. Today, it is a teaching hospital with 180 residents and 1,700 employees. The campus spans across five buildings, and generates $500 million in revenue per year. Located on a 500-acre site owned by St. Luke's University Health Network, the campus features advanced services in the Hospital, Cancer Center, Medical Office Building and the Women & Babies Pavilion. The four-floor, 180,000-square-foot Women's & Babies Pavilion includes a labor and delivery unit, Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and a 36-bed medical/surgical unit. The specialty pavilion offers a wide range of services including ambulatory surgery, urology, obstetrics/gynecology (OB/GYN) services, gastroenterology and laboratory services. The Medical Office Building provides imaging, physical therapy, laboratory and other outpatient testing, health and fitness center and offices for a wide range of physician specialists, including cardiac services and a pulmonary rehabilitation center. Located just off Route 33, and close to routes 33 and 78, the St. Luke's Anderson Campus has a very active Emergency Room. In August of 2022, St. Luke's Anderson Campus expanded its emergency department, increasing the number of beds from 31 to 45 beds. The expansion included: - Three-bay behavioral health secure unit - Three-bed trauma bay, equipped with advanced imaging technology St. Luke's Anderson Campus received Level II Trauma Accreditation on September 1, 2021. The Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation approved the hospital's accreditation after a lengthy and in-depth review of its specialized surgical services and other related medical resources. |
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St. Luke's University Health Network has invested in St. Luke's Anderson to improve both quality of, and access to care. St. Luke's continued to invest in primary care offices that primarily serve Medicaid patients, including St. Luke's Family Practice - Easton. St. Luke's Anderson Campus continued to offer services at St. Luke's Internal Medicine - Wilson. It provides primary care services, selected women's health services and lifestyle medicine services. The internal medicine providers see patients ages 19 and older and family medicine sees both adult and pediatric patients and offers some services. This residency practice accepts all insurances including commercial insurances, patients with Medicare and Medicaid as well as uninsured patients. St. Luke's Anderson Campus specialty pavilion services: - Cardiac Catheterization - Cardiology - Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation - Clinical Neurophysiology - Dermatology - Emergency Services - Endocrinology - Endoscopies - Gastroenterology - Gynecology - Hematology/Oncology - Infusion Services - Labor & Delivery - Maternal & Fetal Medicine - Neurology/Neurosurgery - NICU - Oncology/Hematology - Orthopedics, Joint and Muscle Disorders - Otalaryngology (Head & Neck) Surgery - Pain Management - Palliative Care - Pediatrics - Perinatal Services - Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery - Primary Care - Pulmonary Critical Care - Radiation Oncology - Radiology (Advanced, Interventional) - Renal Dialysis - Rheumatology - Sleep Medicine - Sports Medicine, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Rehab - Surgery (General, Specialty and Laparoscopic) - Urogynecology - Urology - Vascular Neurology - Vascular Services - Women's Imaging Center The campus offers support classes for members of the community. The following are offered consistently: - St. Luke's Hospice - Grief and Loss Support Group - Living Well with Diabetes Class - Wescoe Foundation for Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group - St. Luke's Bariatric Patients Educating Patients (Pep) Rally - Healthy Aging Series - Better Breathers Support Group Over the past decade, St. Luke's Anderson Campus has been improving Freemansburg Avenue, the primary access to the hospital campus. By the time it is completed, the total cost will be $43 million. St. Luke's University Health Network partners with the Rodale Institute to develop an organic farm located on the Anderson Campus. The farm is used to provide locally grown organic produce in network cafeterias and will be served to patients, employees and visitors. Working with the Rodale Institute to develop the St. Luke's Rodale Institute organic farm allows St. Luke's to continue providing patients with a holistic healthcare experience that creates a positive atmosphere for health and healing. By providing patients, visitors and staff members with locally grown organic produce, St. Luke's demonstrates a commitment to the environment and promoting the health and well-being of our patients and the community. Excess produce is sold to staff members and the community allowing these individuals to make healthy eating choices in their own homes, contributing to healthier lifestyles. The annual investment exceeds $560,000. Graduate Medical Education ========================== St. Luke's Graduate Medical Education Program at St. Luke's Anderson Campus started in July 2019 and has experienced extensive growth. The class of 2023 resident graduation will be held June 16, 2024. The Anderson Campus will retain 44% of this year's class as fellows or employees within the network. Of the 156 graduating residents and fellows, 38 are from Anderson Campus sponsored programs (*indicates first graduating class): - Dermatology (2)* - Endocrinology Fellowship (2) - Family Medicine (6) - Internal Medicine (10) - Neurology (4)* - Psychiatry (6)* - Transitional Year (6) - Sleep Fellowship (2)* St. Luke's Anderson Campus has more than 230 residents on campus by 2024 with accredited graduate medical education programs in areas including clinical neurophysiology, dermatology, endocrinology, emergency medicine, family medicine, hematology/oncology, internal medicine, neurology, otolaryngology, head & neck surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, sleep medicine, transitional year and vascular neurology. Other training programs are currently in the developmental stages. St. Luke's Anderson Campus also offers rotations for surgical residents, OB/GYN residents and medical students. Quality Recognition Anderson Campus received a five out of five-star rating from the annual quality and safety hospital review conducted by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS). The CMS ratings are based on the quality of care at Medicare-certified hospitals across the country. The quality measures include safety and value of care, readmission, infection, complication rates, mortality, patient experience, effectiveness and timeliness of care and efficient use of medical imaging. 100 Top Hospitals - Anderson Campus was recognized through Premier 2023 100 Top Hospitals as #5 of 25 Best Teaching Hospitals, making Anderson Campus the highest-ranked hospital in the state in the teaching category. The 100 Top Hospitals recognizes excellence in patient outcomes, quality, efficiency, financial health and community impact. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. SLUHN supports a Department of Community Health that utilizes CHNA results to inform its strategic plan and catalyze initiatives that address priority needs for underserved communities. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. An Anderson Campus Community Health Liaison, also crossed trained as a Community Health Workers (CHW), builds trust in the campus region to improve access to care, services and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's Anderson CHNA identified Northampton County at or worse than state standards for poor mental health days, adult obesity and poor physical health days and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Local school districts and primary care offices serve as hubs in the community where school-based staff and CHWs can build trust to improve access to care, services, trainings and resources. Improved pathways have been developed to bring local, fresh produce to patients and families in need through trusted community partners. Additional partners, such as ProJeCt of Easton, have strengthened and coordinated processes to further connect families to social services, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development opportunities. The St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on Thursday, September 22, 2022 and engaged more than 40 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. |
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Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's Career Mentoring and Workforce Development Community Health team and St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses collaborate with ProJeCt of Easton to support their Student Success Programs, Adult Literacy, Workforce Development and Career Placement. Three St. Luke's Anderson Campus (Environmental Service Aide, Housekeeping and Medical Receptionist) and Six St. Luke's Easton Campus (Patient Care Assistants, Environmental Service Aide, Housekeeping, Nutrition Services Aide, Hostess, Case Management Outreach Coordinator) were hired through this initiative. Career mentoring and workforce initiatives continued to expand during FY 23, including School-to-Work, Health Career Exploration Program, On-the-Job Training and Wellness curriculum visits to the St. Luke's Anderson Campus Rodale Organic Farm. St. Luke's Community Health and St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses partnered with ProJeCt of Easton to support their Student Success Programs, Adult Literacy, Workforce Development and Career Placement. Literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at Star Community Health, Easton and Wilson Area School Districts and St. Luke's Pediatrics. Little Free Libraries were also established at the Anderson Campus, Easton Campus and Bangor Area School District. The Department of Community Health partners with Easton and Wilson Area School Districts, St. Luke's Family Medicine and KidsCare in Easton to help connect families to care. During the first half of FY 23, 61 Easton and Wilson Area School District students were connected to primary care. Paxinosa Elementary School and the Easton Ferry Street Fire Response worked with volunteers from St. Luke's family practices, behavioral health, lifestyle medicine, sports medicine and Community Health to support the Easton Olive & Grace Boutique and Food Pantry for the West Ward and Easton community members. In the Bangor Area School District, community schools provided connections to care for medical, dental and vision services. The Community Health liaison worked with the Wilson Area School District Education Foundation Engagement and Impact Subcommittee to support initiatives in the district related to access to care and other services. St. Luke's Anderson Campus first-year Family Medicine Residents participated in the evidence-based model "See the City You Serve" to provide residents with a better sense of the community and key partners that help promote overall health and wellbeing. Residents also rotate through the Department of Community Health during their first year. Preventing Chronic Disease: The Older Adult Meals Program at the Anderson Campus is a program designed to provide subsidized meals to adults 65 and older at the Anderson Campus cafeteria. During FY 23, the program served 8,800 meals. Community Supported Agriculture provided 241 donated shares to Slater Family Network (Bangor, PA) and Safe Harbor of Easton, PA from St. Luke's Anderson Rodale Organic Farm and St. Luke's Easton Clear Spring local farm. In the community, ProJeCt of Easton and St. Luke's Family Medicine Easton worked together on a "Food Rx" initiative, lifestyle medicine resources and provided vital resources to key community partners and schools. The Department of Community Health worked with Network and community partners to implement diabetes education programs and help promote healthy eating and increase physical activity for prediabetic and diabetic patients. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events during FY 23 and more than 14,000 individuals participated Network-wide. The smoking cessation program provided services for 387 patients Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY 23 in the emergency departments at Anderson and Easton Campuses in collaboration with Northampton County, Treatment Trends Inc. and other recovery center partners. St. Luke's Easton Adolescent Behavioral Health Unit at the Easton Campus also provides connection to care and services for youth in need. The Department of Community Health worked with the County Heroin and Opioid Task Force to connect patients to SUD treatment and recovery services as well as the Northampton County Suicide Task Force to provide mental health trainings, including Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) School-based mental health counseling was implemented at Bangor Area and Easton Area School Districts. Additionally, St. Luke's Penn Foundation provided connection to mental and behavioral health education and messaging. Partnership Collaborations: - American Red Cross - Cops n Kids of Easton & more 220 books donated to Star Community Health - Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Star Community Health, primary care and pediatric connection to care, dental hygiene and integrated behavioral health services - Greater Easton Development Partnership: Main Street Initiative and Easton West Ward Initiative including Equity & Inclusion, Community Health and Housing - Lehigh Valley Domestic Violence Task Force - Paxinosa Elementary & Cheston Elementary Schools - Pennsylvania State Trooper community affairs outreach partnership with Paxinosa - Elementary School and ProJeCt of Easton families - ProJeCt of Easton & St. Luke's Family Medicine - School, career and workforce development pathway and connections to Northampton Community College, ProJeCt of Easton, Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center (PA AHEC) and St. Luke's Anderson, Easton & Bethlehem Human Resources - Slater Family Network - The Lafayette Experience Mentoring Program with Easton and Phillipsburg Area High School students creating a Healing Mural at the Easton Campus. Student Scholarships granted for future career and education pathway - United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley & United Way 211 - Wilson Area School District Education Foundation & Engagement Subcommittee - Wilson LINCS Family Center (Linking Individual Needs with Community Services) Communities that Care Coalition & Key Leadership Partner Sponsorship =========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Anderson Campus provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: - Bethlehem Township Lions Club - Bethlehem Township Volunteer First Company - Bangor Area School District - Blue Eagles Basketball - Easton Area Baseball Organization - Easton Area School District - Heart of a Legend - Kellyn Foundation - Moravian Academy - Nazareth Area Blue Eagle Education Foundation - Nazareth Area School District - Nazareth Borough Police - Northampton Community College - Palmer Township - Upper Nazareth Township - Wilson Area School District Volunteers ========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Anderson Campus volunteers provided 16,270 volunteer hours. ========================================================================== ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PA (St. Luke's Bethlehem, Allentown, Sacred Heart and Lehighton Campuses) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Luke's University Health Network's largest hospital organization is St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem Pennsylvania which includes (1) St. Luke's Hospital Bethlehem Campus; (2) St. Luke's Hospital Allentown Campus; (3) St. Luke's Hospital Lehighton Campus; and (4) St. Luke's Hospital Sacred Heart Campus. The organization is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as an Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS Revenue Ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients |
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2) St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem operates an active emergency room for all persons, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; 3) St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem maintains an open medical staff, with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem rests with its Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of St. Luke's Health Network, Inc., d.b.a. St. Luke's University Health Network. All boards comprise a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; and 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care, programs and activities. The operations of the St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of the organization is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health, and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers and - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Combined, the campuses of St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem had 38,905 patient admissions and observations, 128,009 emergency department visits and 982,334 outpatient visits in fiscal year 2022-23 (FY 23). Volunteers provided 49,093 volunteer hours. ST. LUKE'S BETHLEHEM CAMPUS =========================== St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus is the flagship of the network and contains 929,891 square feet of building space housed on 38.33 acres of land. St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus has 400 acute-care beds. St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus is a joint commission-accredited, not-for-profit, tertiary care, teaching hospital located in Bethlehem, PA, founded in 1872. St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus offers more than 90 medical specialties and has 403 licensed acute care and rehabilitation beds. In FY 23, there were 20,281 admissions and observations, 45,791 emergency department visits 526,035 outpatient registrations. St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus has been designated a Premiere Fortune/PINC AI (formerly Fortune/Merative) 100 Top Hospital in 2023, for the eleventh time and the ninth year in a row. St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus was also identified as the #4 Top Teaching Hospital in the country. St. Luke's University Health Network has been investing significantly in the growth of pediatric services over the past decade. In June 2023, the Network announced St. Luke's Children's Hospital at the Bethlehem Campus representing the culmination of the expansion in pediatric care. St. Luke's Children's Hospital is home to a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Inpatient Pediatric Unit, Pediatric Emergency Department and various pediatric specialty services. Part of this expansion included the opening of The Isaacman Family St. Luke's Children's Emergency Room (ER), a six-bed, dedicated children's emergency room, at St. Luke's Children's Hospital in Bethlehem. This kid-friendly space, designed with children and families in mind, allows children to avoid the added stress of an adult emergency room environment and reduces anxiety while being treated. The Isaacman Family St. Luke's Children's ER provides dedicated pediatric care and, when needed, admission to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and the Pediatric Inpatient Unit at St. Luke's Children's Hospital. Providers are also able to connect with St. Luke's team of pediatric specialists to manage their patient's care. St. Luke's Children's Hospital also added a child life program this year. St. Luke's Certified Child Life Specialists help children and families cope with the stress and uncertainty of acute and chronic illness, injury, trauma, disability, loss and bereavement. They provide evidence-based developmentally and psychologically appropriate interventions including therapeutic play, preparation for procedures, and education to reduce fear, anxiety, and pain. Child Life Specialists can support children on the inpatient units, during surgical procedures, and in the emergency department. In FY 23, St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus invested approximately $9 million dollars in equipment and facility improvements. The investments included the completion of one of the catheterization laboratories on the campus. Smaller facility improvements included a number of HVAC and heat pump repairs and upgrades, parking deck repairs and improvements, the installation of new secure doors on select floors, upgrade of pneumatic tube stations and a variety of other investments. Work was also initiated on six bays in the Emergency Department (ED) to isolate pediatric patients, as we move toward constructing a segregated pediatric ED. Beyond these facility updates to the campus, investments were made in, and upgrades tied to critical care beds, med surg beds and emergency room (ER) stretchers. The campus acquired operating room equipment including but not limited to spine tables, laparoscopic towers and camera heads, laryngoscope equipment, defibrillators and ENT (ears, nose and throat) equipment. The campus invested in anesthesia, er and medical intensive care patient monitors, as well as various adult and pediatric scopes, portable ventilators, ultrasounds and various other equipment to support the nursing units and other numerous departments that support the Bethlehem Campus. In FY 23, St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus volunteers provided more than 13,145 volunteer hours. ST. LUKE'S ALLENTOWN CAMPUS =========================== Located in the west end of the city of Allentown, St. Luke's Allentown Campus was founded in 1945 as the Allentown Osteopathic Medical Center. In 1997, the not-for-profit medical center entered into a merger with St. Luke's University Health Network. St. Luke's Allentown Campus has 163 licensed beds and is accredited by the Joint Commission. In FY 23, there were 12,537 admissions and observations, 52,494 emergency department visits and 301,722 outpatient registrations. St. Luke's Allentown Campus has invested more than $220 million in technologic and facility improvements since it joined the network. In FY 23, the Campus prepared for its new Women and Babies Pavilion, scheduled to open in February 2024. This new expansion will include a Level 3 NICU with 10 NICU beds, nine Labor & Delivery rooms and 13 post-partum rooms. Funding of the project through FY 23 was $34M. When completed the total project cost will be $56 million. Major upgrades to medical equipment in FY 23 included various upgrades to the operating room equipment ($900,000). In addition, the West End Medical Center received a new MRI ($1.8 million). FY 22, improvements included a $9.6 million investment that included a parking deck, new lobby and operating room. Over the years, St. Luke's University Health Network's investment in St. Luke's Allentown Campus' outpatient services have included the St. Luke's West End Medical Center, a 107,000-square-foot outpatient center, and an outpatient cancer center at the Integrated Health Campus in South Whitehall Township and many other outpatient facilities near St. Luke's Allentown Campus. In FY 23, St. Luke's Allentown Campus volunteers provided more than 13,145 volunteer hours. ST. LUKE'S SACRED HEART CAMPUS ============================== St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus is a 175-bed community and teaching hospital in center city Allentown, Pennsylvania. In March 2018, St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus continued to care for Lehigh Valley residents by joining St. Luke's University Health Network and became St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus. Since joining the network, St. Luke's has made a significant financial investment in the facility and equipment at Sacred Heart. In FY 23, St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus patient care included 4,942 observations and admissions, 29,724 emergency department visits and 102,296 outpatient visits. |
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St. Luke's Sacred Heart provides compassionate care to a diverse population. A robust 63-bed adult and 46-bed geriatric behavioral health program provides care to adults in one of five behavioral health inpatient units and includes the region's only 16-bed Level 4 Medical Detox Program, opened in 2021. St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus also has 22 licensed beds for a skilled nursing facility and offers family practice and dental residency programs that educate providers in a clinical setting. Two adjacent medical office buildings house a retail pharmacy, breast imaging center, cardiovascular center and specialty physician offices. St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus ranked among the safest hospitals in the United States having received an "A" grade from the Leapfrog Group in 2016, 2017, 2020, 2021 and 2022. It was and continues to be nationally recognized in case management and is a recipient of the American Stroke Association's Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The Joint Commission recognized the hospital as a top performer in key quality measures and awarded it Primary Stroke Center Certification. Accreditation ------------- St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus is accredited by the Joint Commission. Unannounced accreditation surveys are performed on a triennial basis. The purpose of these surveys is to evaluate each organization's compliance with nationally established joint commission standards. The survey results are used to determine whether the Campus meets the conditions under which, accreditation should be awarded to the organization. Joint Commission standards deal with organizational quality of care issues and the safety of the environment in which care is provided. Awards and Certifications ------------------------- - CMS 5-star rating. Nationally, 14% of hospitals received 5 stars, 29% received 4 stars, and 29% received 3 stars - HAP (Hospital Association of Pennsylvania) Excellence in Patient Safety Recognition 2022 and 2023 - All imaging modalities at St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus and Sacred Heart Imaging Northampton have been awarded a three-year term of accreditation in imaging by the American College of Radiology (ACR). - The laboratory of St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus is accredited by the College of American Pathologists (CAP). The CAP accreditation process is designed to ensure the highest standard of care for all laboratory patients. The U.S. federal government recognizes the CAP laboratory accreditation program as being equal to or more stringent than the government's own inspection program. - St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus has been granted Primary Stroke Center Certification by the Joint Commission. The Joint Commission's certificate recognizes centers that make exceptional efforts to foster better outcomes for stroke care. Achievement of certification signals that the services St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus provides have the critical elements to achieve long-term success in improving outcomes. Critical elements to achieve long-term success in improving outcomes. - St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association's Get with The Guidelines - Stroke Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award. This award recognizes the hospital's commitment and success in ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence. St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus is part of an elite group of hospitals recognized by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. - Sacred Heart Hospital Transitional Care Facility (TCF) was rated the highest rating of five stars by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Department of Health and Human Services. - St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus's Vascular Laboratory has been accredited by the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Vascular Labs (ICAVI) since 1996. Parish Nursing --------------- Parish nursing is a specialty practice of registered nurses and professional model of health ministry. Parish nurses provide holistic nursing care to faith community members across the life span and facilitate wellness and the promotion of a healing community. In keeping with the organization's mission, the Parish Nursing Program seeks to strengthen and reinforce the relationship between health and spirituality by working together with faith communities to promote wellness of body, mind and spirit. The program enables St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus to return to its original mission of caring for the spiritual needs of the community and the physical needs of the sick. Parish nursing is a member of the Coalition Board of the Greater Lehigh Valley, an ecumenical group of community members committed to supporting the parish nurse coalition membership in their ministry. This support is manifested through educational networking meetings, spiritual retreats and conferences developed for parish nurses by the parish nurse coordinator and the coalition board council members. The parish nurse coordinator is also available as a resource for community services. The programs and services the Parish Nursing Program offers are developed based on the needs of the people they serve. Additionally, parish nurses are specially trained to work within faith communities. The department includes a community outreach staff member who focuses specifically on women's health issues. Parish Nursing Services include: - Helping people of all ages overcome obstacles to obtain the health services they need and answer questions or concerns about personal health. - Helping people identify their own health challenges and provide referrals to services needed to meet those challenges. - Offering health screenings including blood pressure and health assessments. - Providing health information that may be of special interest or importance to the community, such as information concerning insurances, access to care and bilingual or cultural information. - Scheduling free screening mammograms and pap smears for uninsured and underinsured women. Senior Services --------------- - St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus is committed to serving its senior population by providing a comprehensive continuum of care and is also dedicated to providing programs and resources for caregivers of the elderly. - Comprehensive senior services provide preventive treatment options, treatment for existing conditions, educational programs and senior living services. The focus for Senior Services is to improve the quality of life for each individual. - West Turner Residences offer both personal care and independent living. Short, long, respite, rehabilitation, post-hospital and vacation stays are available. - Personal care enhances the lives of seniors who wish to maintain their independent lifestyle but find they need a helping hand. Independent living maximizes retirement lifestyle with the assurance of 24-hour security, housekeeping services, an inclusive dining package and the close companionship of family and friends. If the level of care or daily requirements changes from independent living to personal care, there is no need to change the suite or apartment. The same services can be provided in the current residence. Also, couples can have diverse levels of care and remain living together. In FY 23, St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus volunteers provided more than 12,411 volunteer hours. ST. LUKE'S LEHIGHTON CAMPUS =========================== St. Luke's Lehighton Campus, formerly known as, previously part of the Blue Mountain Health Network, became part of St. Luke's University Health Network on January 1, 2018. The Palmerton Hospital, also part of the Blue Mountain Health acquisition closed in June 2019, however, it re-opened as an urgent care facility, with extended hours, to the Carbon community on July 1, 2019. On June 1, 2021, St. Luke's Lehighton Campus fell under the Bethlehem Campus operating license. In FY 23, there were 1,145 admissions and observations and 52,281 outpatient registrations. St. Luke's Lehighton Campus provides acute inpatient and outpatient medical and surgical care. As of Nov. 20, 2021, emergency services were relocated to the new hospital at 500 St. Luke's drive off Harrity Road in Franklin Township, Lehighton. With the opening of the new hospital, the focus of St. Luke's Lehighton Campus operations shifted to in-patient behavioral health, outpatient services, the Summit Nursing Facility and the Patient Acute Rehabilitation Center (ARC), along with additional physician offices. |
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The Campus is also home to the 22-bed Adult and 20-bed Older Adult Behavioral Health Units and St. Luke's Psychiatric Associates - Lehighton. In the summer of 2022, St. Luke's opened the region's first Behavioral Health Walk-In Outpatient Center. Open every day, patients 14 and older can seek help with conditions such as anxiety, panic attacks, depression, grief, thoughts of self-harm, mood swings, anger and school phobia in a comfortable, non-intimidating environment. Patients must come willingly. In FY 2022, the Carbon County Veteran's Affairs Office opened a satellite office at St. Luke's Lehighton Campus. Carbon County. With approximately 5,000 veterans, Carbon County has led the state in veteran suicides, according to center for rural Pennsylvania data. Locating the office in a hospital facilitates and encourages veterans coping with behavioral health issues to seek help available at the Campus. St. Luke's Lehighton Campus operates a 22-bed inpatient acute rehabilitation unit on the third floor of St. Luke's Lehighton hospital. The unit provides inpatient rehabilitation for patients who have experienced stroke, major-multi traumas, complex joint replacements, amputation, severe arthritis, multiple sclerosis and other physical and neurological conditions. The acute rehabilitation team offers specialized rehabilitation care in beautifully appointed rooms and is the most comprehensive unit of its type in the Carbon County area. In FY 23, the services available at St. Luke's Lehighton Campus included: - Adult Behavioral Health - Adult Partial Hospitalization - Cardiac Catheterization - Cardiology - Critical Care - ECT (Electro-Convulsive Therapy) - Emergency Services - Endoscopies - Endocrinology - Gynecology - Infusion Services - Neurology - Older Adult Behavioral Health - Orthopedics, Joint and Muscle Disorders - Pain Management - Radiology (Advanced, Interventional) - Sleep Disorders Center - Physical And Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation - Surgery (General, Specialty And Laparoscopic) - Vascular Services - Pulmonology The St. Luke's Lehighton Campus works closely with St. Luke's Carbon Campus in serving patients in the area. St. Luke's Carbon hospital is a three-story, 52-patient-room, 160,000 square-feet facility. It is the largest Campus of its kind in the history of Carbon County and the first new hospital built in the County in 65 years. It is the centerpiece of the network's new 108-acre technologically advanced, multipurpose, rural medical and wellness complex. It redefines healthcare access, convenience and quality for the local population and surrounding areas. All rooms are private and outfitted with wall-mounted, 55-inch smart TVs to facilitate two-way audio/visual communication between patients and their providers anywhere, as well as patients and their family members worldwide. Real-time, computer system-linked digital whiteboards in patient rooms display the names of the patient's caregivers, day of the week, scheduled activities and other useful safety information. First of its kind Life-Aire Air Purification Systems installed in the air ducts throughout the hospital's treatment areas kill all air pathogens, including COVID-19 and anthrax, making it one of the few hospitals in the nation with this novel technology. Volunteers: in FY 23, St. Luke's Lehighton volunteers provided 3,472 volunteer hours. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ================== St. Luke's University Campus Bethlehem St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. SLUHN supports a Department of Community Health that utilizes CHNA results to inform its strategic plan and catalyze initiatives that address priority needs for underserved communities. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust in the hospital campus regions to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. The St. Luke's Bethlehem State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on October 25, 2022, and engaged 56 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: Connections to Care: Initiatives such as Parish Nursing, Mobile Youth Health Centers, Community Schools, and Maternal-Child health provide connections to care and resources for vulnerable populations in need. This includes homeless or near homeless, children, families, and others facing hardships. The Parish Nursing initiatives included 1,386 encounters (e.g., calls, appointments, Follow ups) with 482 unique individuals during FY23. A total of 138 patients completed primary care visits based on Parish Nursing referrals. An additional 67 referrals were made to various specialties including women's health, urology, gastroenterology, and preventative screenings (e.g., mammograms). A total of 575 resources (e.g., clothing, hygiene, bus passes) were provided to 190 unique individuals. During FY23, $8,085 Bridging the Gaps funds were distributed to 104 unique individuals to support their basic needs. St. Luke's partnership with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education, and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. St. Luke's University Health Network's Information Technology, Quality, Case Management, and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
This platform, as well as United Way's 211, are tools that the campus liaison use to assist our community members, patients, and staff to connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. The HOPE (Health, Outreach, Prevention, Education) Program provides clinical, case management, and prevention services to persons living with HIV. HOPE at St. Luke's provided 227 individuals with comprehensive HIV care and provided medical case management to 237 individuals living with HIV. HOPE has seen an increase in patients with complex needs and/or barriers (e.g., medically compromised, homeless, uninsured, undocumented) over the past several years. To address these barriers, HOPE continues to expand its HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS) and Medical Case Management services. In collaboration with AIDSNET and the Pennsylvania Department of Health, HOPE opened an office at St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus in 2022, expanding HOPWA services to Lehigh County. HOPE hired five Housing Coordinators and two additional Case Managers to meet the growing needs of those served. As of FY23, 87 patients currently receive housing assistance through ongoing rental assistance, connection to public housing, or by actively working with a Housing Coordinator to identify housing opportunities. To achieve improved housing stability for clients, HOPE approved 192 authorizations during the year to expand housing services. St. Luke's has established collaborative processes with community partners, such as Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley (HCLV), to meet individuals where they are and promote connections and access to care. Star Community Health, a Federally-Qualified Health Center Look-Alike (FQHC-LA) affiliated with St. Luke's, provides care and wraparound services, including dental van services, to uninsured and underinsured individuals and families at little or no out-of-pocket cost. St. Luke's transportation services, in collaboration with Lyft rideshare, ensures access to care by supporting rides to and from care visits. Transportation initiatives supported by SLUHN align with the primary goal of improving access to primary care for homeless and near homeless populations. By providing complimentary Lyft rides to and from appointments with primary care doctors and other specialists, this initiative allows patients to receive routine care in a timely manner, with the added goal of reducing the frequency and overuse of Emergency Department resources. During FY23 approximately 25,000 rides were provided at a cost of nearly $600,000. Additionally, stable housing greatly impacts an individual's ability to access and maintain regular medical care. St. Luke's partners with local organizations to address the housing shortage through community partnerships at the campus-level to build capacity within the community. Workforce Development: St. Luke's 2022 CHNA results show that access to health resources differ based on income and medical insurance coverage. St. Luke's supports workforce development initiatives for both adults and school- aged populations including the School-to-Work initiative, Health Career Exploration Program, On-the-Job training, and the new Cultural and Linguistic Workforce Centers. These opportunities promote education, experiential learning, and skills-based training to prepare individuals for the workforce and help them gain employment that provides them with a livable wage. SLUHN's adolescent career mentoring programs target both in-school and out-of-school youth between the ages of 15-24 years old who reside in Lehigh and Northampton Counties through a combination of hospital rotations, professional development sessions, and work experience. On-the-Job Training is a work experience program in partnership with the Workforce Board Lehigh Valley to promote healthcare careers through hands on learning. The Health Career Exploration Program (HCEP) was established more than 15 years ago. Through HCEP, St. Luke's provides experiential learning opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds to careers in the healthcare industry to help them gain insight into clinical and non-clinical roles, teach them job-keeping and job-seeking skills, help them understand future employment opportunities, and build confidence in their abilities. The students spend approximately 15 hours each week working in their assigned department and receiving group instruction in key life skills including financial literacy, leadership, resume development and interviewing skills. Since the program's inception, 98% of students who participated in the Health Career Exploration Program have graduated from high school. During FY23, 25 HCEP students completed the program and shared a final presentation where they highlighted their experiences and the skills they learned. Career mentoring and workforce initiatives continued to expand during FY23, including the Health Career Exploration Program, School-To-Work, and On-the-Job Training in Bethlehem. St. Luke's University Health Network school-based staff provided services to families and students at Marvine and Donegan Elementary Schools. Marvine Elementary School is supported by St. Luke's, the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, and other community partners. Through a partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank, Marvine Elementary School provides a food pantry for students and families facing food insecurity. Literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at Marvine and Donegan Elementary Schools. The Department of Community Health school-based staff in Bethlehem work directly with the school district and related partners to address these needs and to serve as a hub in the community to build trust for improved access to care, education, services, and resources. During the 2022-23 school year, the Family Development Specialist at Donegan Elementary School directly connected more than 95 students and families to care and services. The Community School Coordinator at Marvine Elementary School serves more than 300 households in the community. In addition, the partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank and other local organizations help to bring food and related services to the school community. During FY 23, the Mobile Youth Health Centers (MYHC) provided care and services to 465 unique students through 1,219 encounters. These encounters included connections to medical insurance, a medical home, vision and dental services, and additional community resources as identified. MHYC services were available at Broughal Middle School, Freedom High School, Liberty High School, and Northeast Middle School. A total of 46 vision vouchers were provided to the district students totaling $4,940. Star Community Health also provided services to the Bethlehem connections to care and service areas during FY 23. The Star Bethlehem Dental Van visited 9 schools and provided 1,075 visits, 933 sealants, and 463 restorations during FY 23. Both Star Community Health and SLUHN utilize findhelp, a self-navigation online platform to help community members connect with local partners. Preventing Chronic Disease: The Department of Community Health worked with Star Community Health-Southside Bethlehem to implement diabetes education programs and promote healthy eating and physical activity for prediabetic and diabetic patients. Community Health, in partnership with medical residents at Star Community Health (e.g., Sigal Center in Allentown, Southside Medical in Bethlehem) and St. Luke's Fitness and Sports Performance, implemented a quality improvement (QI) project focused on patients with poorly controlled diabetes (i.e., HgbA1C>9). This initiative included clinical diabetes visits, diabetes education with a registered dietitian, physical activity opportunities, and access to healthy food. The project's goal was to decrease the clinic's overall Diabetes Poor Control to 31%; Star Community Health Southside Bethlehem achieved 30% and Sigal Center achieved 32%. St. Luke's University Health Network's Smoking Cessation Program provides smoking cessation visits with certified tobacco treatment specialists, physicians, and/or advanced practitioners. The smoking cessation program provided services for 387 patients Network-wide. The Get Your Tail on the Trail free community healthy living initiative held events in Bethlehem during FY23 and more than 14,000 individuals participated Network-wide. St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated 260 shares to local community organizations including the cancer support community and local churches. Through our Community Schools partnerships, Marvine Elementary School supported students and families facing food insecurity with a food pantry. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley also provided access to food for families in need through their pantry in Southside Bethlehem. During FY23, the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley food pantry assisted families for a total of 859 visits and 62,065 pounds of food. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 in the emergency departments at Bethlehem Campus in collaboration with Northampton County, Treatment Trends Inc., and other recovery center partners. The Department of Community Health worked with the Northampton County Task Force to connect patients to SUD treatment and recovery services as well as the Northampton County Suicide Task Force to provide mental health trainings, including Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) established school-based mental health counseling at Bethlehem Area School District. Mindfulness rooms were created at Marvine Elementary School for staff, Donegan Elementary School for students, and Boys and Girls Club of Bethlehem for adults and children to support mental health and self-care. Partnership Collaboration: - Boys and Girls Club Bethlehem - Bethlehem Health Bureau - Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Star Community Health, primary care, and pediatric connection to care, dental hygiene, and integrated behavioral health services. - Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley - Just Born - Lehigh University - New Bethany Ministries - Northampton County SUD Response and Warm Hand Off to treatment and recovery - Northampton County Suicide Prevention Task Force and Question, Persuade, Refer trainings - Second Harvest Lehigh Valley - United Way Greater Lehigh Valley - Volunteer Center Lehigh Valley St. Luke's Allentown Campus, St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. SLUHN supports a Department of Community Health that utilizes CHNA results to inform its strategic plan and catalyze initiatives that address priority needs for underserved communities. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust in the hospital campus regions to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease prevention, and improving mental and behavioral health. Access to Care: Connections to Care: Initiatives such as Parish Nursing, Mobile Youth Health Centers, Community Schools, and Maternal-Child health provide connections to care and resources for vulnerable populations in need. This includes homeless or near homeless, children, families, and others facing hardships. The Parish Nursing initiatives included 1,386 encounters (e.g., calls, appointments, Follow-ups) with 482 unique individuals during FY 23. A total of 138 patients completed primary care visits based on Parish Nursing referrals. An additional 67 referrals were made to various specialties including women's health, urology, gastroenterology, and preventative screenings (e.g., mammograms). A total of 575 resources (e.g., clothing, hygiene, bus passes) were provided to 190 unique individuals. During FY23, $8,085 Bridging the Gaps funds were distributed to 104 unique individuals in order to support their basic needs. St. Luke's partnership with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education, and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. St. Luke's University Health Network's Information Technology, Quality, Case Management, and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. This platform and United Way's 211 are tools the campus liaison uses to assist our community members, patients, and staff connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. The HOPE (Health, Outreach, Prevention, Education) Program provides clinical, case management, and prevention services to persons living with HIV. HOPE at St. Luke's provided 227 individuals with comprehensive HIV care and provided medical case management to 237 individuals living with HIV. HOPE has seen an increase in patients with complex needs and/or barriers (e.g., medically compromised, homeless, uninsured, undocumented) over the past several years. To address these barriers, HOPE continues to expand its HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS) and Medical Case Management services. In collaboration with AIDSNET and the Pennsylvania Department of Health, HOPE opened an office at St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus in 2022, expanding HOPWA services to Lehigh County. HOPE hired five Housing Coordinators and two additional Case Managers to meet the growing needs of those served. As of FY23, 87 patients currently receive housing assistance through ongoing rental assistance, connection to public housing, or by actively working with a Housing Coordinator to identify housing opportunities. To achieve improved housing stability for clients, HOPE approved 192 authorizations during the year to expand housing services. Star Community Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center Look-Alike (FQHC-LA) affiliated with St. Luke's, provides care and wraparound services, including dental van services, to uninsured and underinsured individuals and families at little or no out-of-pocket cost. St. Luke's transportation services, in collaboration with Lyft rideshare, ensures access to care by supporting rides to and from care visits. Transportation initiatives supported by SLUHN align with the primary goal of improving access to primary care for homeless and near homeless populations. By providing complimentary Lyft rides to and from appointments with primary care doctors and other specialists, this initiative allows patients to receive routine care in a timely manner, with the added goal of reducing the frequency and overuse of Emergency Department resources. During FY23 approximately 25,000 rides were provided at a cost of nearly $600,000. Additionally, stable housing greatly impacts an individual's ability to access and maintain regular medical care. St. Luke's partners with local organizations to address the housing shortage through community partnerships at the campus-level to build capacity within the community. Workforce Development: St. Luke's 2022 CHNA results show that access to health resources differ based on income and medical insurance coverage. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's supports workforce development initiatives for both adults and school- aged populations including the School-to-Work initiative, Health Career Exploration Program, On-the-Job training, and the new Cultural and Linguistic Workforce Centers. These opportunities promote education, experiential learning, and skills-based training to prepare individuals for the workforce and help them gain employment that provides them with a livable wage. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) identified Lehigh County at or worse than state standards for food insecurity, mental health provider ratios and poor mental health days, children in poverty, high school graduation, and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Allentown School District and the St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus Action Committees work with partners to address these needs and to serve as a hub in the community to build trust for improved access to care, services, and resources. The St. Luke's Sacred Heart and Allentown Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on October 31, 2022, and engaged 79 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. Housing Action Committee: Habitat for Humanity Lehigh Valley, Community Action Lehigh Valley, City of Allentown, and other partners provided home repairs and lead abatement services in Allentown. To date, more than $850,000 was raised to support this initiative. Workforce Action Committee: A Cultural and Linguistic Workforce Development Center was established in collaboration with Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley in FY23 (see Annual Report p. 24). Lehigh Carbon Community College, Northampton Community College, and The Literacy Center are additional partners to support educational and workforce development services. Workforce Board Lehigh Valley is co-located at St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus and participants can be referred to the centers as needed. The centers offer English as a Second Language classes, General Education Development (i.e., GED), and specialized training in a number of healthcare positions beginning in FY24. Participants will work with bilingual (Spanish and English) Workforce Development Coordinators to identify career goals and barriers to employment. The program is funded by a $450,000 grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Department of Community and Economic Development. Education Action Committee: During FY23, a partnership with local preschool education providers was established to screen Star Community Health Sigal Center pediatric patients and engage families to enroll in preschool. Additionally, the committee brought together local partners for a round table discussion on the Childcare Workforce Crisis. This Community Meeting took place at Sacred Heart Campus Auditorium on December 7th, engaging more than 70 partners and community members. St. Luke's Allentown School-Based Partnerships: The Raub Middle School collaboration provides consistent and sustainable efforts with the goal of measurably improving access to services for families and community members in need. Beginning in March 2022, school-based staff worked with Second Harvest Food Bank and related partners to bring a mobile food pantry to the Raub Middle School community. Prior to FY23, the pantry served approximately 100 families per event. This number increased to an average of 350 households served each month during FY23 due to strengthened partnerships and community engagement. In addition to food insecurity initiatives, the school-based Community School Coordinator and After School Coordinator organized 21 diverse programs and initiatives resulting in 375 encounters (duplicated), as well as school-wide events available to all students. Through the Mobile Youth Health Center services, 440 unique students received services through 1,104 encounters. Additional school partnerships include Harrison Morton Middle School, Hays Elementary School, and Union Terrace Elementary School. St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) school-based staff provide services to families and students at Raub Middle School. Raub is a Community School supported by SLUHN, in partnership with the United Way and other local organizations. Through a partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank, St. Luke's school-based staff also implement a monthly mobile food pantry at Raub for students, families, and the school community. During FY23, the Mobile Health Youth Clinic (MYHC) provided care and services to 440 unique students in the Allentown School District through 1,104 encounters and connected them to medical insurance, a medical home, vision and dental services, and community resources as identified through MHYC providing services at Raub Middle School, William Allen High School, and Newcomer School. A total of 96 vision vouchers were provided to district students totaling $10,070. Sigal Center, located in Allentown (Star Community Health), provided connection to care and services. Star Community Health's Dental Van visited 9 schools and provided 988 visits, 1,737 sealants, and 344 restorations during FY23. Both Star Community Health and SLUHN utilize findhelp, a self-navigation online platform to help community members connect with local partners. St. Luke's Sacred Heart Family Medicine first-year medical residents participated in the evidence-based model "See the City You Serve" to provide residents with a better sense of the community and key partners that help promote overall health and wellbeing. Residents also rotate through the Department of Community Health during their first year, working with Allentown-based initiatives. Career mentoring and workforce initiatives continued to expand during FY23, including the Health Career Exploration Program and On-the-Job Training initiatives in Allentown. Literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at Union Terrace Elementary School with the help of students from Raub Middle School. Preventing Chronic Disease: St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus provided daily meals (Monday-Friday) for food insecure children from the ages of 0-18 years. There were 1,418 total meals served to children and 560 meals to adults at the Sacred Heart site. Through grant funds, families were provided fresh vegetables every week with shares from local farmers along with weekend bags of non-perishable items. These bags also included recipes, community resources, and education. Through St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), 243 shares were donated to a local church food pantry, 6th Street Shelter, Valley Youth House, Hogar Crea, and Star Community Health Sigal Center. The Department of Community Health worked with Sigal Center to implement diabetes education programs and help promote healthy eating and increased physical activity for prediabetic and diabetic patients. Community Health, in partnership with medical residents at Star Community Health (e.g., Sigal Center, Southside Bethlehem) and St. Luke's Fitness and Sports Performance, implemented a quality improvement (QI) project focused on patients with poorly controlled diabetes (i.e., HgbA1C>9). This initiative included clinical diabetes visits, diabetes education with a registered dietitian, physical activity opportunities, and access to healthy food. The project's goal was to decrease the clinic's overall Diabetes Poor Control to 31%; Star Community Health Southside Bethlehem achieved 30% and Sigal Center achieved 32%. St. Luke's University Health Network's Smoking Cessation Program provides smoking cessation visits with certified tobacco treatment specialists, physicians, and/or advanced practitioners. The smoking cessation program provided services for 387 patients Network-wide. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events in Allentown during FY23 and more than 14,000 individuals participated Network-wide Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 in collaboration with Lehigh County Task Force and Treatment Trends Inc. to connect patients to SUD treatment and recovery. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Narcan education and distribution was provided to the community and in the Emergency Department (including a Certified Recovery Specialist) for those that present with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) and/or overdose. St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus' Medical Detox Unit and SUD services (e.g., Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT), SHARE clinic, Behavioral Health Services) continued to expand during FY23. Partnerships with Treatment Trends Inc.'s The Center allowed for the establishment of the Student-Led Interdisciplinary Care Center (SLICC). Additionally, through our Community School partnerships, positive mental health messaging and support was provided to all Raub Middle School students, teachers, and staff. Partnership Collaboration: - Allentown Health Bureau - Allentown School District - CareerLink (located on the Sacred Heart Campus) connects neighborhood residents to jobs in and outside of the network - City of Allentown - First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union at Raub Middle School - findhelp: St. Luke's self-navigation online platform with local established community-based organizations integrated into Electronic Medical Records - Lehigh County Suicide Prevention Task Force - Star Community Health connection to services, education, and resources including dental, pediatrics, family medicine - Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley and Northeastern Pennsylvania - SUD Response and Warm Hand Off with Treatment Trends and Lehigh County - Social Determinants of Health Committees - United Way Greater Lehigh Valley partnership St. Luke's Carbon and Lehighton Campuses ---------------------------------------- St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's partners with local schools, civic, and community organizations to improve the health of Carbon County residents and the surrounding area. St. Luke's Carbon and Lehighton Campuses supports the Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) priority areas that are identified within the campus service area by collecting and analyzing data and community input. The St. Luke's Lehighton and Carbon Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on November 16, 2022, and engaged 40 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's partnership with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education, and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. St. Luke's University Health Network's Information Technology, Quality, Case Management, and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. This platform, as well as United Way's 211, are tools to assist our community members, patients, and staff to connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. St. Luke's promotes literacy in Carbon County through the evidence-based Reach Out and Read (ROR) program in partnership with Carbon County Community Foundation. ROR is integrated into our Carbon County pediatric and family medicine practices to engage families during each well patient visit. In addition, Brush, Book, Bed (BBB), an American Academy of Pediatrics initiative to engage families on the importance of a regular bedtime routine, is integrated to promote oral health, literacy, and healthy lifestyles and behaviors. The Dolly Parton Imagination Library initiative, also funded by the Carbon County Community Foundation, further supports literacy and provides age-appropriate books for all Carbon County children enrolled. During FY23, participating St. Luke's Physician Group pediatrics and family medicine practices completed 1,520 well- visits for children ages 0-5 years in which trained providers and staff engaged families with messaging and resources vital for growth and development. The Dolly Parton Imagination Library initiative added 321 new children this past year. Since July 2021, when the program was launched, 1,274 Carbon County children have engaged and received age-appropriate books each month. Of those children, 355 have "graduated," meaning they aged-out of the program (i.e., reached age six). Additionally, literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at local schools along with the Veterans literacy imitative at the St. Luke's Lehighton Campus as well as Little Free Libraries. St. Luke's Community Health partners with the Carbon County Interagency Collaborative to provide consistent communications and support. More than 100 Carbon County social service organizations and nonprofit partners are represented, with over 35 regularly contributing to collaborative meetings. The committee identifies gaps, barriers, and opportunities and prioritizes how to best align existing services and strengthen connections to care, education, and resources. Additionally, several subcommittees and initiatives are established to build capacity for key community needs (e.g., transportation, literacy, early childhood education, prevention efforts). St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) school-based staff provide services to students and families in the Panther Valley School District (PVSD) and our Community Health Workers (CHW) help support programs and initiatives at Carbon County School Districts. St. Luke's staff also help to implement a food pantry for PVSD families facing food insecurity. In collaboration with the St. Luke's Rural Health Centers and with support from CHWs, connections to care were established to improve access to school physicals, vaccinations, education, and resources. The Star Community Health Dental Van partnered with 10 local schools during FY23 providing 1,936 visits, 3,170 sealants, and 478 restorations. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
The Carbon County schools the dental van visits are Panther Valley Elementary, Intermediate, and High School, SS Palmer Elementary School, Weatherly Elementary School, Behavioral Health Associates (BHA), and PathStone Lehighton Head Start. Priorities in Panther Valley School District (PVSD) aligned with the Community School Model to connect students and their families to a medical home, vision, dental, behavioral health services, and other social services. During FY23, through the Mobile Youth Health Centers, 88 unique students were provided care and services through 95 encounters and consistent connection to care with school-based coordinators. St. Luke's Carbon Campus partners with PathStone Head Start to provide support connection to care services for young families in need. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. Preventing Chronic Disease: St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated 86 shares of fresh fruits and vegetables from the St. Luke's Anderson Rodale Organic Farm to PathStone Head Start families. The Panther Valley Community Food Pantry was held monthly at Panther Valley Elementary and parent outreach services were provided at the pantry. The Rural Health Center food access partnership was implemented to improve patient intake of fresh produce to help support healthy eating habits. The VALOR Foundation Stand Down Lansford quarterly food access support service was another food access location. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 at the Carbon and Lehighton Campuses in collaboration with Carbon/Monroe Substance Use Task Force and Emergency Departments. The Department of Community Health worked with partners to deliver a Community Stigma Presentation for Carbon and Schuylkill Counties and 106 participants attended. Narcan Education and Distribution was provided during FY23 to 169 community members in Carbon and Schuylkill Counties. Safe Medication Disposal boxes continued to provide a space to dispose of unwanted medicines at the St. Luke's Carbon Campus. During FY23, 181.2 pounds of unused medication were safely disposed. St. Luke's Lehighton Campus provides access to mental health services through the walk-in behavioral health center as well as Veterans services through the County's Veterans Office. Weekly positive messaging and resource newsletters were distributed via school email blasts and social media. A Rural Health Center Social Worker provided support services and connections to mental and behavioral health services for students, families, and community members. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) school-based mental health counseled 50 students at PVSD and 21 students at Weatherly School District. Partnership Collaboration: - Area Health Education Center (AHEC) - Blue Mountain Ski Resort Community partnership - Carbon County Area Agency on Aging - Carbon County KidZone for injury prevention and education - Carbon County Interagency Collaborative Council - Carbon County Technical Institute, Lehigh County Community - College and Carbon County CareerLink Career Mentoring Committee - Carbon County Veteran Affairs collaboration - Houser Newman Vision Vouchers at Panther Valley and Weatherly School Districts - Panther Valley, Lehighton, Palmerton, Jim Thorpe and Weatherly Community Partnerships for Health Education And Wellness Committee Support - PathStone Head Start partnership since 2014 for health education and wellness support including physical and mental and behavioral health resources - Pennsylvania State Police Collaborative SPONSORSHIP =========== In FY 23, the campuses of St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem Pennsylvania provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: St. Luke's Bethlehem Campus --------------------------- - Bethlehem Area School District - Bethlehem Area Vocational and Technical School - Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce - Bethlehem Economic Development Corporation BEDCO - Friends of the Bethlehem Mounted Police - Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce - Healing Through the Arts - Hispanic Center of the Lehigh Valley - Historic Bethlehem Museum and Sites - Lehigh University - Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Arts - Moravian Academy - New Bethany Ministries - Northampton Community College - Salisbury Township School District - Saucon Valley School District - South Bethlehem Historical Society - Southside Arts District - Upper Saucon Chamber of Commerce - Volunteer Center of the Lehigh Valley - Yasso Rothrock Christmas City Classic St. Luke's Allentown Campus and St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus -------------------------------------------------------------- - Allentown Fair - Allentown Rescue Mission - Allentown School District - Allentown St. Patrick's Parade - Andre Reed Foundation - Baum School of Art - Boys and Girls Club of Allentown - Cedar Crest College - Chamber of Commerce - Community Music School - EC/BCLS Training Center - Good Shepherd - Jewish Federation - Lehigh Carbon Community College - Lehigh Career and Technical Institute HOSA (Health Occupation Students of America) - Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (Baseball Team) - Lower Macungie Township - Metro Decorators, Inc. - North Catasauqua Police Dept - North Parkland Athletic Association - PA Latino Convention - Parkland Area School District - Second Harvest Food Bank - St. Luke's Community Ambassador - St. Luke's Sports Performance - Suicide Prevention Coalition of the Lehigh Valley - Western Lehigh United Soccer Club - Whitehall Sports Turf - Whitehall-Coplay School District - YWCA Allentown St. Luke's Lehighton Campus ---------------------------- - Blue Mountain Resort - Blue Mountain School District - Bo Thach Foundation - Carbon County Community Foundation - Bowmanstown Area Residents Connected (BARC) - Boyertown Area School District - Carbon County Community Foundation - City of Hazleton Parks & Rec - Dream Come True, Blue Ridge Chapter - Hippie 5K - Lehigh Carbon Community College - Lehighton Area School District - North Schuylkill School District - Northern Lehigh Area School District - Palmerton Area School District - Schuylkill Haven School District - Schuylkill League, Inc. - Tamaqua's Safer Streets for Little Feet ========================================================================== ST. LUKE'S CARBON CAMPUS ------------------------ CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS St. Luke's Carbon Hospital opened on Nov. 20, 2021. The three-story 52-patient-room, 160,000 square-feet facility is the largest campus of its kind in the history of Carbon County and the first new hospital built in the county in 65 years. It is the centerpiece of the network's new 108-acre technologically advanced, multipurpose, rural medical and wellness complex. The hospital is recognized by the internal revenue service (IRS) as an internal revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Carbon Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Carbon Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS revenue ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Carbon Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Carbon Campus operates an active emergency room for all persons; which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; 3) St. Luke's University Health Network maintains an open medical staff, with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Carbon Campus rests with its Board of Directors and the Board of Trustees of St. Luke's Health Network, Inc., D.B.A. St. Luke's University Health Network. All boards comprise a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; and 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care programs and activities. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
The operations of St. Luke's Carbon Campus, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Carbon Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual, nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's Carbon Campus is to care for the sick and injured and improve our community's health regardless of a patient's ability to pay. Vision ====== The vision of St. Luke's Carbon Campus is to be the preferred hospital in Carbon County for high-quality, cost-effective care and outstanding service. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers and, - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Overview ======== St. Luke's Carbon Campus underscores St. Luke's commitment to the health and well-being of the community. The campus provides quality services that keep people healthy physically, emotionally and spiritually and ultimately enhance the health status of area residents. Located off Harrity Road in Franklin Township, Lehighton, the campus ensures that ill and injured patients can receive excellent care close to home. In FY 23, St. Carbon Campus provided care for 4,120 admissions and observations, 20,578 emergency department visits and 26,827 outpatient visits. St. Luke's Carbon Campus redefines healthcare access, convenience and quality. Onsite, there is a 30-bed emergency room, 24/7 critical care with 12 intensive care beds, with four step-down beds, state-of-the-art operating rooms and the region's most advanced radiology and diagnostic technology. Patient rooms are private and each is outfitted with a wall-mounted, 55-inch smart TV to facilitate two-way audio/visual communication between patients and their providers anywhere, as well as patients and their family members worldwide. Real-time computer system-linked digital whiteboards in the patient rooms display the names of the patient's caregivers, day of the week, scheduled activities and other useful safety information. First-of-its-kind life-aire air purification systems installed in the air ducts throughout the hospital's treatment areas kill air pathogens, including COVID-19 and anthrax, making it one of the few hospitals in the nation with this novel technology. To meet the high demand from area residents for quality emergency services. St. Luke's Carbon Campus broke ground in January 2022 to expand the number of beds in its emergency department (ed) to 30 rooms. The expanded ER opened in October 2022. Among the features of the state-of-the-art St. Luke's Carbon Campus ED, each room: - Is private - Has cardiac monitors - Is equipped with a bed that can weigh patients for calculating prescription dosages; and - Has a television to help patients pass the time while waiting for test results and treatment. From the day it opened, St. Luke's Carbon Campus has been embraced by the public. In the first year of operations, the hospital (1) became an accredited Chest Pain Center by the American College Of Cardiology; (2) was designated a Level IV Trauma Center by the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation; and (3) sustained top quartile performance in patient experience. In FY 23, St. Luke's Carbon Campus invested $7 million to expand its inpatient capacity to 52 rooms (previously 40) and to open a third operating room. These projects were due to increased demand and capacity needs at the campus. The FY 22 highlights include the first combined mastectomy and breast implant in March. St. Luke's University Health Network has continued to invest in St. Luke's Carbon Campus to improve both quality of and access to care. St. Luke's Carbon Campus works closely with St. Luke's Lehighton Campus in meeting the community's health care needs. St. Luke's Carbon Campus is home to outpatient services, the summit nursing facility and patient acute rehabilitation center (arc), along with additional physician offices. The campus is also home to The Adult and Older Adult Behavioral Health Units and St. Luke's Psychiatric Associates - Lehighton. In the summer of 2022, St. Luke's opened the region's first behavioral health walk-in outpatient center. Open every day, patients 14 and older can seek help with conditions such as anxiety, panic attacks, depression, grief, thoughts of self-harm, mood swings, anger and school phobia in a comfortable, non-intimidating environment. Patients must come willingly. In FY 2022, the Carbon County Veteran's Affairs Office opened a satellite office at St. Luke's Lehighton campus. Carbon County with approximately 5,000 veterans, has led the state in veteran suicides, according to Center for Rural Pennsylvania Data. Locating the office in a hospital facilitates and encourages veterans coping with behavioral health issues to seek help available at the campus. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's partners with local schools, civic, and community organizations to improve the health of Carbon County residents and the surrounding area. St. Luke's Carbon and Lehighton Campuses supports the Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) priority areas that are identified within the campus service area by collecting and analyzing data and community input. The St. Luke's Lehighton and Carbon Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on November 16, 2022, and engaged 40 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's partnership with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education, and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. St. Luke's University Health Network's Information Technology, Quality, Case Management, and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. This platform, as well as United Way's 211, are tools to assist our community members, patients, and staff to connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. St. Luke's promotes literacy in Carbon County through the evidence-based Reach Out and Read (ROR) program in partnership with Carbon County Community Foundation. ROR is integrated into our Carbon County pediatric and family medicine practices to engage families during each well patient visit. In addition, Brush, Book, Bed (BBB), an American Academy of Pediatrics initiative to engage families on the importance of a regular bedtime routine, is integrated to promote oral health, literacy, and healthy lifestyles and behaviors. The Dolly Parton Imagination Library initiative, also funded by the Carbon County Community Foundation, further supports literacy and provides age-appropriate books for all Carbon County children enrolled. During FY23, participating St. Luke's Physician Group pediatrics and family medicine practices completed 1,520 well- visits for children ages 0-5 years in which trained providers and staff engaged families with messaging and resources vital for growth and development. The Dolly Parton Imagination Library initiative added 321 new children this past year. Since July 2021, when the program was launched, 1,274 Carbon County children have engaged and received age-appropriate books each month. Of those children, 355 have "graduated," meaning they aged-out of the program (i.e., reached age six). Additionally, literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at local schools along with the Veterans literacy imitative at the St. Luke's Lehighton Campus as well as Little Free Libraries. St. Luke's Community Health partners with the Carbon County Interagency Collaborative to provide consistent communications and support. More than 100 Carbon County social service organizations and nonprofit partners are represented, with over 35 regularly contributing to collaborative meetings. The committee identifies gaps, barriers, and opportunities and prioritizes how to best align existing services and strengthen connections to care, education, and resources. Additionally, several subcommittees and initiatives are established to build capacity for key community needs (e.g., transportation, literacy, early childhood education, prevention efforts). St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) school-based staff provide services to students and families in the Panther Valley School District (PVSD) and our Community Health Workers (CHW) help support programs and initiatives at Carbon County School Districts. St. Luke's staff also help to implement a food pantry for PVSD families facing food insecurity. In collaboration with the St. Luke's Rural Health Centers and with support from CHWs, connections to care were established to improve access to school physicals, vaccinations, education, and resources. The Star Community Health Dental Van partnered with 10 local schools during FY23 providing 1,936 visits, 3,170 sealants, and 478 restorations. The Carbon County schools the dental van visits are Panther Valley Elementary, Intermediate, and High School, SS Palmer Elementary School, Weatherly Elementary School, Behavioral Health Associates (BHA), and PathStone Lehighton Head Start. Priorities in Panther Valley School District (PVSD) aligned with the Community School Model to connect students and their families to a medical home, vision, dental, behavioral health services, and other social services. During FY23, through the Mobile Youth Health Centers, 88 unique students were provided care and services through 95 encounters and consistent connection to care with school-based coordinators. St. Luke's Carbon Campus partners with PathStone Head Start to provide support connection to care services for young families in need. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. Preventing Chronic Disease: St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated 86 shares of fresh fruits and vegetables from the St. Luke's Anderson Rodale Organic Farm to PathStone Head Start families. The Panther Valley Community Food Pantry was held monthly at Panther Valley Elementary and parent outreach services were provided at the pantry. The Rural Health Center food access partnership was implemented to improve patient intake of fresh produce to help support healthy eating habits. The VALOR Foundation Stand Down Lansford quarterly food access support service was another food access location. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 at the Carbon and Lehighton Campuses in collaboration with Carbon/Monroe Substance Use Task Force and Emergency Departments. The Department of Community Health worked with partners to deliver a Community Stigma Presentation for Carbon and Schuylkill Counties and 106 participants attended. Narcan Education and Distribution was provided during FY23 to 169 community members in Carbon and Schuylkill Counties. Safe Medication Disposal boxes continued to provide a space to dispose of unwanted medicines at the St. Luke's Carbon Campus. During FY23, 181.2 pounds of unused medication were safely disposed. St. Luke's Lehighton Campus provides access to mental health services through the walk-in behavioral health center as well as Veterans services through the County's Veterans Office. Weekly positive messaging and resource newsletters were distributed via school email blasts and social media. A Rural Health Center Social Worker provided support services and connections to mental and behavioral health services for students, families, and community members. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) school-based mental health counseled 50 students at PVSD and 21 students at Weatherly School District. Partnership Collaboration: - Area Health Education Center (AHEC) - Blue Mountain Ski Resort Community partnership - Carbon County Area Agency on Aging - Carbon County KidZone for injury prevention and education - Carbon County Interagency Collaborative Council - Carbon County Technical Institute, Lehigh County Community - College and Carbon County CareerLink Career Mentoring Committee - Carbon County Veteran Affairs collaboration - Houser Newman Vision Vouchers at Panther Valley and Weatherly School Districts - Panther Valley, Lehighton, Palmerton, Jim Thorpe and Weatherly Community Partnerships for Health Education and Wellness Committee Support - PathStone Head Start partnership since 2014 for health education and wellness support including physical and mental and behavioral health resources - Pennsylvania State Police Collaborative Sponsorship =========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Carbon Campus provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: - Blue Mountain Resort - Blue Mountain School District - Bo Thach Foundation - Carbon County Community Foundation - Bowmanstown Area Residents Connected (BARC) - Boyertown Area School District - Carbon County Community Foundation - City of Hazleton Parks & Rec - Dream Come True, Blue Ridge Chapter - Hippie 5K - Lehigh Carbon Community College - Lehighton Area School District - North Schuylkill School District - Northern Lehigh Area School District - Palmerton Area School District - Schuylkill Haven School District - Schuylkill League, In. - Tamaqua's Safer Streets for Little Feet Volunteers ========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Carbon Campus volunteers provided 2,260 volunteer hours. ========================================================================= |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
ST. LUKE'S EASTON CAMPUS ------------------------ St. Luke's Easton Campus is a Joint Commission-accredited, not-for-profit, acute care hospital located in eastern Northampton County, Pennsylvania. On July 1, 2020, St. Luke's University Health Network acquired the 125-year-old Easton Hospital and renamed it St. Luke's Easton Campus. The campus primarily services residents of Northampton County and western Warren County, NJ. St. Luke's Easton Campus is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an Internal Revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Easton Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Easton Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the revenue ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Easton Campus provides medically necessary health care services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Easton Campus operates an active emergency department, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year, for all persons; 3) St. Luke's Easton Campus maintains an open medical staff with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Easton Campus rests with its Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors of St. Luke's University Health Network, Inc. D.B.A. St. Luke's. Both boards comprise a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care, programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Easton Campus, as demonstrated through the factors outlined above and additional information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Easton Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization benefit any private individual, nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. MISSION ======== The mission of St. Luke's Easton Campus is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers, and training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. OVERVIEW ========= On July 1, 2020, St. Luke's acquired from Steward Health Care Easton Hospital, its affiliated physician practices and residency programs with 36 physician residents. A national, for-profit health network, Steward had owned Easton Hospital since 2017. The acquisition of Easton Hospital has preserved the 125-year-old hospital for future generations and brings St. Luke's world-class health care to the greater Easton-area community. In keeping with its commitment to the communities it serves, St. Luke's has been building partnerships and supporting community programs in Easton for years, culminating with the opening of St. Luke's Anderson Campus in 2011 and finally the purchase of Easton Hospital itself. This collaboration will ensure that Easton-area residents will continue to receive the quality, compassionate care in a community hospital setting with access to the deep expertise and broad array of specialists in the network. In FY 23, St. Luke's Easton Campus provided care for 1,942 admissions and observations, 21,342 emergency department visits and 52,834 outpatient visits. Founded in 1890, St. Luke's Easton Campus provides inpatient care (180 licensed beds; currently operating/staffing 35 medical/surgical beds); emergency room services; radiology, lab services and more to patients residing primarily in Northampton County and western Warren County, New Jersey. St. Luke's continued to invest in the hospital throughout FY 22-23. In 2021 and 2022, St. Luke's added interventional radiology, vascular services and an adolescent behavioral health unit. The hospital's specialty services include: - Adolescent Behavioral Health - Cardiology - Emergency Services - Gastroenterology/Endoscopy - Inpatient Hemodialysis - Interventional Radiology - Medical/Surgical Services - Monoclonal Antibody Treatment - COVID-19 Clinic - Occupational Therapy/Physical Therapy - Orthopedics - Pulmonary Function Testing - Radiology - Vascular and Cardiology Testing - Walk-In Lab/Blood Draw On Jan. 2, 2022, St. Luke's Easton Campus opened a new adolescent behavioral health unit to provide safe, expert and compassionate care to children and adolescents experiencing serious mental, emotional or behavioral symptoms. The unit is located on the hospital's third floor. The 16-bed, 13,250-square-foot unit is specifically designed for patients ages 12 to 18 experiencing emotional and behavioral problems that interfere with their daily life, physical health, family or school routine. The unit keeps care in the community and close to home. Also, the St. Luke's Easton Campus opened a new Orthopedic Center on Dec. 1, 2022. The center includes 14 patient treatment rooms and a dedicated radiology unit. Leapfrog -------- The Leapfrog Group brought together publicly available data about hospital safety to calculate a hospital safety score which includes measures related to surgical complications, hospital associated conditions/infections, patient experience, intensive care unit (ICU) physician staffing, hand hygiene, surgical volumes, computerized physician order entry and safe practices. St. Luke's Easton Campus' letter grade for the fall of 2023 reporting was "A." According to the Leapfrog Group - The Leapfrog Hospital Safety grade is made up of 22 evidence based measures of patient safety. These measures indicate how well hospitals protect patients from preventable errors, injuries, and infections. Joint Commission Primary Stroke Reaccreditation Survey ------------------------------------------------------ The Joint Commission was onsite in September 2021 for the Primary Stroke Center Reaccreditation Survey. The program was successfully reaccredited for two years. Hospital Compare Star Ratings ----------------------------- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released new data on its Hospital Compare website in January 2023, St. Luke's Easton Hospital received a five out of five-star rating. The star ratings are comprised of quality measures including mortality, readmission, safety of care, patient experiences, effectiveness and timeliness of care and efficient use of imaging. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. SLUHN supports a Department of Community Health that utilizes CHNA results to inform its strategic plan and catalyze initiatives that address priority needs for underserved communities. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. An Easton Campus Community Health Liaison, also crossed trained as a Community Health Workers (CHW), builds trust in the campus region to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's CHNA identified Northampton County at or worse than state standards for poor mental health days, adult obesity and poor physical health days, and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Local school districts and primary care offices serve as hubs in the community where school-based staff and CHWs can build trust to improve access to care, services, trainings, and resources. Improved pathways have been developed to bring local, fresh produce to patients and families in need through trusted community partners. Additional partners, such as ProJeCt of Easton, have strengthened and coordinated processes to further connect families to social services, financial literacy, career mentoring, and workforce development opportunities. The St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on Thursday, September 22, 2022, and engaged more than 40 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care, and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families, and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's Career Mentoring and Workforce Development Community Health team and St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses collaborate with ProJeCt of Easton to support their Student Success Programs, Adult Literacy, Workforce Development, and Career Placement. 3 St. Luke's Anderson Campus (Environmental Service Aide, Housekeeping, and Medical Receptionist) and 6 St. Luke's Easton Campus (Patient Care Assistants, Environmental Service Aide, Housekeeping, Nutrition Services Aide, Hostess, Case Management Outreach Coordinator) were hired through this initiative. Career mentoring and workforce initiatives continued to expand during FY23, including School-to-Work, Health Career Exploration Program, On-the-Job Training, and Wellness curriculum visits to the St. Luke's Anderson Campus Rodale Organic Farm. St. Luke's Community Health and St. Luke's Anderson and Easton Campuses partnered with ProJeCt of Easton to support their Student Success Programs, Adult Literacy, Workforce Development, and Career Placement. Literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at Star Community Health, Easton and Wilson Area School Districts, and St. Luke's Pediatrics. Little Free Libraries were also established at the Anderson Campus, Easton Campus, and Bangor Area School District. The Department of Community Health partners with Easton and Wilson Area School Districts, St. Luke's Family Medicine, and KidsCare in Easton to help connect families to care. During the first half of FY23, 61 Easton and Wilson Area School District students were connected to primary care. Paxinosa Elementary School and the Easton Ferry Street Fire Response worked with volunteers from St. Luke's family practices, behavioral health, lifestyle medicine, sports medicine, and Community Health to support the Easton Olive & Grace Boutique and Food Pantry for the West Ward and Easton community members. In the Bangor Area School District, community schools provided connections to care for medical, dental, and vision services. The Community Health liaison worked with the Wilson Area School District Education Foundation Engagement and Impact Subcommittee to support initiatives in the district related to access to care and other services. The HOPE (Health, Outreach, Prevention, Education) Program provides clinical, case management, and prevention services to persons living with HIV. HOPE at St. Luke's provided 227 individuals with comprehensive HIV care and provided medical case management to 237 individuals living with HIV. HOPE has seen an increase in patients with complex needs and/or barriers (e.g., medically compromised, homeless, uninsured, undocumented) over the past several years. To address these barriers, HOPE continues to expand its HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS) and Medical Case Management services. In collaboration with AIDSNET and the Pennsylvania Department of Health, HOPE opened an office at St. Luke's Sacred Heart Campus in 2022, expanding HOPWA services to Lehigh County. HOPE hired five Housing Coordinators and two additional Case Managers to meet the growing needs of those served. As of FY23, 87 patients currently receive housing assistance through ongoing rental assistance, connection to public housing, or by actively working with a Housing Coordinator to identify housing opportunities. To achieve improved housing stability for clients, HOPE approved 192 authorizations during the year to expand housing services. St. Luke's Anderson Campus first-year Family Medicine Residents participated in the evidence-based model "See the City You Serve" to provide residents with a better sense of the community and key partners that help promote overall health and wellbeing. Residents also rotate through the Department of Community Health during their first year. Preventing Chronic Disease: The Older Adult Meals Program at the Anderson Campus is a program designed to provide subsidized meals to adults 65 and older at the Anderson Campus cafeteria. During FY23, the program served 8,800 meals. Community Supported Agriculture provided 241 donated shares to Slater Family Network (Bangor, PA), and Safe Harbor of Easton, PA from St. Luke's Anderson Rodale Organic Farm and St. Luke's Easton Clear Spring local farm. In the community, ProJeCt of Easton and St. Luke's Family Medicine Easton worked together on a "Food Rx" initiative, lifestyle medicine resources, and provided vital resources to key community partners and schools. The Department of Community Health worked with Network and community partners to implement diabetes education programs and help promote healthy eating and increase physical activity for prediabetic and diabetic patients. Get Your Tail on the Trail held events during FY23 and more than 14,000 individuals participated Network-wide. The smoking cessation program provided services for 387 patients Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 in the emergency departments at the Easton Campus in collaboration with Northampton County, Treatment Trends Inc., and other recovery center partners. St. Luke's Easton Adolescent Behavioral Health Unit at the Easton Campus also provides connection to care and services for youth in need. The Department of Community Health worked with the County Heroin and Opioid Task Force to connect patients to SUD treatment and recovery services as well as the Northampton County Suicide Task Force to provide mental health trainings, including Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) School-based mental health counseling was implemented at Bangor Area and Easton Area School Districts. Additionally, St. Luke's Penn Foundation provided connection to mental and behavioral health education and messaging. Partnership Collaborations: - American Red Cross - Cops n Kids of Easton & more 220 books donated to Star Community Health - Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Star Community Health, primary care, and pediatric connection to care, dental hygiene, and integrated behavioral health services - Greater Easton Development Partnership: Main Street Initiative and Easton West Ward Initiative including Equity & Inclusion, Community Health, and Housing - Lehigh Valley Domestic Violence Task Force - Paxinosa Elementary & Cheston Elementary Schools |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
- Pennsylvania State Trooper community affairs outreach partnership with Paxinosa - Elementary School and ProJeCt of Easton families - ProJeCt of Easton & St. Luke's Family Medicine - School, career, and workforce development pathway and connections to Northampton Community College, ProJeCt of Easton, Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center (PA AHEC), and St. Luke's Anderson, Easton & Bethlehem Human Resources - Slater Family Network - The Lafayette Experience Mentoring Program with Easton and Phillipsburg Area High School students creating a Healing Mural at the Easton Campus. Student Scholarships granted for future career and education pathway - United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley & United Way 211 - Wilson Area School District Education Foundation & Engagement Subcommittee - Wilson LINCS Family Center (Linking Individual Needs with Community Services) Communities that Care Coalition & Key Leadership Partner Sponsorship ----------- In FY 23, St. Luke's Easton Campus provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: - Bangor Area School District - Blue Eagles Basketball - Children's Home of Easton - Easton Area Baseball Organization - Easton Area Chamber of Commerce - Easton Area School District - Forks Township - Heart of a Legend Nazareth Area School District - Kellyn Foundation - Moravian Academy - Nazareth Area Blue Eagle Education Foundation - Nazareth Area School District - Nazareth Blue Eagles Basketball - Nazareth Borough Police - Notre Dame High School - Easton - Northampton Community College - Our Lady of Lebanon Church - Palmer Township - Notre Dame High School - Easton - The Neighborhood Center - Third Street Alliance - Two Rivers Wellness - Upper Nazareth Township - VegStock - Wilson Area School District - Wilson Borough Celebration Committee - Wilson Borough Police Association VOLUNTEERS =========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Easton Campus volunteers provided 3,442 volunteer hours. ========================================================================== CARBON-SCHUYLKILL COMMUNITY HOSPITAL, INC. (DBA ST. LUKE'S MINERS CAMPUS) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Carbon-Schuylkill Community Hospital, Inc. (DBA St. Luke's Miners Campus) is a joint commission-accredited, not-for-profit, 49-licensed bed acute care hospital and a 48-bed skilled nursing facility located in Coaldale, Pennsylvania, Schuylkill County near the Carbon County border providing care primarily to residents of Schuylkill, Carbon and lower Luzerne counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. It also includes nine physical therapy locations and three Rural Health Primary Care Centers. The hospital is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Miners Campus provides medically necessary health care services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or the ability to pay. Founded in 1910, St. Luke's Miners Campus joined the nationally recognized St. Luke's University Health Network in 2000 and celebrated its 110th year of community service in July 2020. Moreover, St. Luke's Miners Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS revenue ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Miners Campus provides medically necessary health care services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Miners Campus operates an active emergency department, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year, for all persons; 3) St. Luke's Miners Campus maintains an open medical staff, with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Miners Campus rests with its Board of Trustees and the Board of Trustees of St. Luke's University Health Network, Inc. D.B.A. St. Luke's University Health Network. Both boards are comprised of a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care, programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Miners Campus as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Miners Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's University Hospital is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Overview ========= The campus provides patients with access to over 600 physicians across 30 medical specialties. The hospital is accredited as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission, a Chest Pain Center by the American College of Cardiology and as a Level IV Trauma Center by the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation. In FY 23, St. Luke's Miners Campus provided care for 3,173 admissions and observations, 20,335 emergency department visits and 166,132 outpatient visits. St. Luke's Miners Campus is located in Coaldale, a federally designated medically underserved area. St. Luke's Miners Campus now operates three provider-based, Rural Health Primary Care Centers in Tamaqua, Ringtown, Lansford. No patient is denied care, regardless of their ability to pay or insurance status. Delivering more than 12,000 patient visits, the centers provide primary care access to the uninsured, patients with Medicare or Medicaid and those who cannot find a primary care provider. They treat patients of all ages, offering exceptional quality care close to home, including sports physicals, school physicals and in-school programs. The Rural Health Clinics were named the "2018 outstanding rural health organization" by the National Rural Health Association for Innovative Primary Care and Access in Rural Medically Underserved Areas. The centers also provide integrated diagnostic and therapeutic mental health services in the primary care office and are the training clinics for the St. Luke's Miners Rural Family Medicine Residency Program. Additionally, in Hometown, St. Luke's Miners Campus operates the region's only rural health dental clinic providing care for patients with Medicaid or having no dental insurance. St. Luke's Miners Campus and Hometown Health Center were named the 2023 PA Oral Health Champions by the Pennsylvania Coalition for Oral Health. Throughout FY 23, St. Luke's Miners Campus had much to celebrate. It opened a new, state-of-the-art MRI suite, expanded its presence in the Hazleton market with the opening of its Care Now, Primary Care practice, X-ray and lab services, and improved access to high quality musculoskeletal services. In FY 18, St. Luke's Miners Campus started the first Family Medicine Residency Rural Training Track in This three-year residency trains family medicine physicians who want to practice in a rural setting. Each residency class has four residents. The Rural Health Clinics serve as the clinical training sites for medicine residency program. Out of the 93 rurally located family medicine residency programs in the United States at that time, the St. Luke's Family Medicine Residency Program - Miners was one of just 34 nationwide - and the only one in Pennsylvania - that are accredited as integrated rural training tracks (RTT). In FY 23, the network invested $3.9 million to purchase and construct a new MRI suite and an additional $1.3 million in technical and facility improvements. Last year, the network invested approximately $1.8 million in technical and facility improvements at St. Luke's Miners Campus. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
- 24/7 access to orthopedic surgeons providing the most advanced diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for patients with musculoskeletal disorders and injuries - A highly trained cardiac team, which includes experienced and skilled cardiologists, cardiac and vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists and electrophysiologists - Oncologists and a wide range of oncology specialists - 24/7 neurologist and neurosurgical access - 24/7 general surgeon access - Hospitalists St. Luke's Miners Campus provides 24/7 tele-psychiatry and tele-neurology services which delivers immediate benefits to both patients and clinical staff by providing quick access for psychiatric and neurological consultations for patients. The hospital also established a clinical rotation with four schools to allow physician assistant students to complete their clinical study in a rural community setting. The network's specialty services include: - Bariatric Surgery - Cardiology - Cardiac Surgery - Certified Diabetes Education - Colon/Rectal Surgery - Critical Care - Dental - Emergency Services - Endocrinology - Endovascular - Gastroenterology - Geriatric Medicine - Infectious Disease - Interventional Radiology - Labor and Delivery - Level I Trauma Center Team - Long-Term Care Services - Nephrology - Neurology - Neurosurgery - Obstetrics and Gynecology - Oncology/Hematology - Orthopedics, Joint and Muscle Disorders - Otolaryngology/Ent - Palliative Care - Pain Management - Primary Care - Psychiatry - Pulmonology - Radiology (Advanced) - Short-Term Rehabilitation - Skilled Nursing - Sleep Medicine - Sports Medicine, Physical, Speech and Occupational Therapy - Surgery (General and Laparoscopic) - Thoracic Surgery - Urology - Vascular - Weight Loss Management - Women's Health - Wound Management St. Luke's Miners Rehabilitation and Nursing Center =================================================== St. Luke's Miners Rehabilitation and Nursing Center is a fully accredited, 48-bed, hospital-based, skilled nursing facility located on the fifth floor of the hospital. Individualized short-time rehabilitation and long-term care services are provided. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's partners with local schools, civic organizations and community resources to improve the health of the residents of Schuylkill and Carbon Counties and the surrounding area. St. Luke's Miners supports the CHNA priority areas that are identified within the campus service area by collecting and analyzing data and community input. Based on the identified needs and priorities, each campus develops plans and programs to improve the health of those in the communities. The St. Luke's Miners State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on September 29, 2022, and engaged 38 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: Connections to Care: Initiatives such as Mobile Youth Health Centers and Community Schools provide connections to care and resources for vulnerable populations in need. This includes homeless or near homeless, children, families and others facing hardships. St. Luke's partnership with findhelp, a free self-navigating online platform, that continues to expand its reach to provide community members in need with connections to care, education and resources in their local community at low or no-cost. findhelp (sluhn.findhelp.com) is a social care network established to provide a comprehensive platform for people to find social services in their communities and for nonprofit and other community-based organizations to coordinate their service delivery and support services. St. Luke's University Health Network's Information Technology, Quality, Case Management and Department of Community Health work collaboratively, especially with Star Community Health, the Rural Health Centers and more than 200 established (i.e., claimed) community-based partners in the communities we serve. The self-navigating online platform allows community members to search and connect to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) support such as financial assistance, food pantries, medical care, transportation, among others. This platform and United Way's 211 are tools to help our community members, patients and staff connect to vital resources. Community Health continues to onboard priority partners to ensure accurate and up-to-date resources are available to our communities. The partnership between St. Luke's Department of Community Health, Head Start and Panther Valley School District (PVSD) began in 2013 in both Carbon and Schuylkill Counties through the St. Luke's Miners Campus. These efforts have measurably improved access and services to families in need. The partnership with PVSD helps to promote outreach and services including mobile medical visits, school-based referrals and additional connections to care and services. In 2022, in partnership with St. Luke's and the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, PVSD adopted the Community School Model. A Family Development Specialist (FDS) and Community School Coordinator work in partnership to support students and families district wide. At Panther Valley Elementary School, the FDS worked with more than 70 families referred by staff and supported 600 elementary students to address barriers to student attendance and improve parent engagement. An additional FDS worked district-wide, including support at Panther Valley Junior/Senior High School supporting more than 50 families referred by staff and coordinated a prosocial student activity group called Step Up Panthers. Priorities in PVSD aligned with the Community School Model to connect students and their families to a medical home, vision, dental, behavioral health services and other social services. Through the mobile youth medical clinic, during FY 23 88 unique students were provided care and services through 95 encounters and consistent connection to care with school-based coordinators. School-based coordinators at TASD identified and connected students to care when they were in need of physical, behavioral or social services. Schuylkill Child Development Head Start and a SLUHN CHW embedded in the centers partnered during FY 23 to provide support services for young families in need. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY 23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's Miners has four Community Health Workers (CHW) that provide connection to services for students and families at Child Development and PathStone Head Start, Panther Valley School District (PVSD) and Tamaqua Area School District (TASD). The rural Community Health Workers connect additional school districts and organizations to resources when needed. Additionally, in collaboration with the St. Luke's Rural Health Centers, connections to care were established to improve access to school physicals, vaccinations, education and resources. The Star Community Health Dental Van partnered with 10 local schools during FY 23 providing 1,936 visits, 3,170 sealants and 478 restorations. The Schuylkill County schools the dental van visits are Tamaqua Elementary, West Penn Elementary School and Tamaqua Middle School. Literacy promotion through Read Across America was implemented at local schools as well as the evidence-based Reach Out and Read with Brush, Book, Bed at local Pediatrics and Family Medicine practices. Additional literacy initiatives include Veterans Books, Dolly Parton Imagination Library and Little Free Libraries. Preventing Chronic Disease: In partnership with the Department of Community Health and Second Harvest Food Bank, PVSD opened a monthly school-based community food pantry that supported up to 300 households per month. The Panther Valley Community Food Pantry was held monthly at Panther Valley Elementary and parent outreach services were provided at the pantry. The Rural Health Center food access partnership was implemented to improve patient intake of fresh produce. The Rural Health Centers distributed 18 bags of fresh produce weekly in Tamaqua to help support healthy eating habits. The VALOR Foundation Stand Down in Lansford and the Tamaqua Hunger Coalition partnership were additional food access points. The St. Luke's Miners Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated Eight CSA shares to the Miners Infusion Center for patients receiving cancer treatments. Additionally, the Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY 23 at the Miners Campuses in collaboration with Carbon/Monroe Substance Use Task Force and Schuylkill REACH (i.e., Recovery, Education, Advocacy, Community Health). The Department of Community Health worked with partners to deliver a Community Stigma Presentation for Carbon and Schuylkill and 106 participants attended. Narcan Education and Distribution was provided during FY 23 to 169 community members in Carbon and Schuylkill Counties. Safe Medication Disposal boxes continued to provide a space to dispose of unwanted medicines. During FY 23, 226.3 pounds were safely disposed at the St. Luke's Miners Campus. Weekly positive messaging and resource newsletter were distributed via school email blasts and social media throughout the PVSD community. A Rural Health Center Social Worker provided support services and connections to mental and behavioral health services for students, families and community members. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) school-based mental health counseled 50 students at PVSD and 21 students at Weatherly School District. Partnership Collaborations: - Carbon County Interagency Collaborative: Community Health coordinates 50+ partners meeting five times a year to align resources - Carbon County Kid Zone for Injury Prevention including car seat checks, bike helmets education and distribution - Carbon County Veterans Affairs - Carbon, Monroe, Pike Drug and Alcohol and Schuylkill Drug and Alcohol - Carbon, Monroe, Pike Mental Health and Developmental Services and Schuylkill Mental Health - Clinical Outcomes Group (COGI) - Carbon and Schuylkill Substance Use Task Force - East Central Area Health Education Council (AHEC) - Greater Lehigh Valley United Way - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) - Lehigh Carbon Community College SHINE program - Panther Valley School District - PathStone and Child Development Head Start - Second Harvest Food Bank - Schuylkill Child Development - Schuylkill Suicide Prevention Task Force - Schuylkill United Way - Star Community Health connection to services including dental vans at local schools - Tamaqua Community Partnership (including Tamaqua Hunger Coalition, Hope and Coffee, Tamaqua Community Arts Center) Sponsorship ========== The hospital pursues expanded relationships and health improvement advocacy with the communities it serves through various coalition-building activities. In FY 23, St. Luke's Miners Campus sponsored community organizations, including, but not limited to, the following: - Boy Scouts of America Hawk Mountain Council - Diakon Senior Fair - Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress - Helping Hands Society - Lansford Halloween Group - Mahanoy Football Boosters - Sexual Assault Resource & Counseling Center - Tamaqua Community Center - Tamaqua Public Library - The Friends of Tuscarora and Locust Lake State Parks. - Mahanoy City Little League - Ryan Township Fire Company - Tamaqua Area School District - SARCC (Sexual Assault Resource & Counseling Center) Volunteers ========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Miners Campus volunteers provided 1,381 volunteer hours. ========================================================================== ST. LUKE'S MONROE CAMPUS ------------------------ St. Luke's Hospital Monroe Campus, the first new acute-care, non-replacement hospital Monroe County has seen in 100 years, comprises four stories and 180,000 square feet. The $100-million hospital building has 98 private patient rooms, including 12 beds for critical care patients. All are spacious and beautifully decorated to promote healing. The hospital also features state-of-the-art operating and procedure rooms, a helipad, a large and efficient emergency room, a cardiac catheterization lab and the most modern medical technologies from GE Healthcare. Close to major roadways, St. Luke's Monroe Campus has the signature fountain feature and a walking trail nestled in a beautiful, natural setting to promote wellness in the community. From the day it opened, St. Luke's Monroe Campus has been embraced by the public and FY 23 was no exception. St. Luke's Monroe Campus is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an Internal Revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Monroe Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Monroe Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the IRS revenue ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Monroe Campus provides medically necessary healthcare services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Monroe Campus operates an active emergency room for all persons; which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; 3) St. Luke's Monroe Campus maintains an open medical staff, with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Monroe Campus rests with The Board of Trustees of St. Luke's Health Network, inc., d.b.a. St. Luke's University Health Network. The board is comprised of a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; and 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care; programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Monroe Campus, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Monroe Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's Monroe Campus is to provide compassionate, excellent quality and cost-effective healthcare to residents of the communities served regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. The mission of St. Luke's Monroe Campus is an unwavering commitment to excellence as we care for the sick and injured; educate physicians, nurses and other healthcare providers; and improve access to care in the communities we serve, regardless of a patient's ability to pay for their care. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers and, - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. St. Luke's Monroe Campus focuses on providing high-quality patient care. Overview ======== On October 3, 2016, St. Luke's Monroe Campus opened its doors to the community, becoming the seventh hospital in the St. Luke's Health Network. The hospital provides acute inpatient and outpatient medical and surgical care. The campus has an annual capacity for 10,000 inpatient and observation admissions and has a 33-bed emergency department with an annual capacity for 62,000 visits. In FY 23, St. Luke's Monroe Campus provided care for 9,112 admissions and observations, 49,947 emergency department visits and 202,861 outpatient visits. In FY 23, St. Luke's University Health Network officially broke ground on a new four-story, 165,000 square-foot patient care building in August 2022 at its Monroe Campus. The expansion investment is $90.2m, the addition will double the size of the existing hospital. The new patient care tower is expected to open in 2024. It will be built on the east side of the St. Luke's Monroe Campus. It will house a general medical-surgery unit with 36 beds, additional operating and procedure space, expanded outpatient programs and a state-of-the-art interventional radiology suite as well as shell space for future development. St. Luke's Monroe Campus continued to bring outpatient services closer to the homes of its patients by opening two new health centers in FY 23. The 17,500-square-foot St. Luke's Health Center at Pocono Summit provides comprehensive health care for families, including walk-in urgent care and lab services, primary care, orthopedics, physical therapy and pediatrics. In April 2023, the 40,000-square-foot St. Luke's Smithfield Gateway Health Center in East Stroudsburg opened. Services offered include St. Luke's Medical Associates of Monroe County, which was renamed St. Luke's Smithfield Primary Care, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, dermatology, pulmonology, laboratory services, diabetes and endocrinology, imaging and urgent care (Care Now). Previously, the St. Luke's family practice - Tobyhanna at the Mountain Center in April 2022. This clinic is a residency practice operated under St. Luke's physician group. It will provide primary care services and selected women's health services. This residency practice accepts all insurances including commercial insurances, Medicare and Medicaid patients, and uninsured patients. In March of 2018, St. Luke's University Health Network opened its second diagnostic breast imaging facility, specifically designed to serve Monroe County and surrounding area patients in need of routine and advanced diagnostic mammograms and testing. This state-of-the-art facility offers advanced technologies such as low dose 3D mammography and automated breast ultrasound (ABUS). Patients benefit from having highly skilled radiologists read their test results immediately. Patients with an abnormal finding can have a biopsy right away, helping to reduce the fear and anxiety of waiting. The St. Luke's Monroe Regional Breast Center includes the most advanced, computer-aided software to help in diagnosing breast anomalies and the latest digital and 3d mammography equipment from GE Healthcare. The center is equipped with Sensorysuite to provide a calmer, interactive mammogram experience and the region's first Pristina Dueta mammography, a patient-assisted compression device which gives patients a sense of control during their mammograms. Another major investment in the St. Luke's Monroe Campus was a three-floor, 37,500-square-foot cancer center and medical office building located at 200 St. Luke's Lane adjacent to the hospital. The $22 million building opened in November 2017 and expanded the breadth of offerings at St. Luke's Monroe Campus to include medical, surgical and gynecologic oncology, radiation therapy, infusion (chemotherapy), imaging, orthopedics and a sleep lab. The Cancer Center is equipped with a Varian Truebeam linear accelerator that features advanced radiation-sparing technologies like OSMS - which stops treatment if a patient moves - as well as a "6 degrees of freedom perfect pitch couch," which allows therapists to position a patient in the exact perfect spot for optimal treatment and comfort. St. Luke's Monroe Campus specialty services include: - Cardiac Catheterization - Cardiology - Dermatology - Emergency Services - Endoscopies - Ears, Nose and Throat (Ent) - Gastroenterology - Gynecology - Infectious Disease - Infusion Services - Maternal Fetal Medicine - Nephrology - Neurology - Obstetrics/Gynecology - Occupational Medicine - Oncology/Hematology - Orthopedics, Joint and Muscle Disorders - Pain Management - Palliative Care - Pediatrics - Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery - Podiatry - Primary Care - Pulmonary - Radiation Oncology - Radiology (Advanced, Interventional) - Inpatient Renal Dialysis - Sleep Center - Spine & Pain Medicine - Sports Medicine, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation - Surgery (General, Specialty and Laparoscopic) - Urology - Vascular Services - Weight Management - Women's Imaging Center - Wound Management St. Luke's Monroe Campus is service oriented with a goal to reduce patient and family stress and anxiety and to provide a calm and reassuring environment by meeting, and often exceeding, their personal needs. Softer lighting is used in the hallways and the dcor is done in relaxing earth tones. Available amenities include flat screen televisions, free WIFI service, daily newspaper delivery and a recliner and comfortable sofa bed in every room. Leapfrog --------- St. Luke's Monroe Campus was recognized as a top general hospital by the Leapfrog Group, which brought together publicly available data about hospital safety to calculate a hospital safety score. This includes measures related to surgical complications, hospital associated conditions/infections, patient experience, intensive care unit (ICU) physician staffing, hand hygiene, surgical volumes, computerized physician order entry and safe practices. Recognition for safety by the leapfrog group is one of the health industry's most prestigious honors. Unlike many other health care awards, it is based entirely on an independent, scientific review of objective data. St. Luke's Monroe Campus' letter grade for the spring and fall of 2023 reporting was "A." In fact, St. Luke's Monroe Campus has received an "A" grade since it became eligible. Hospital Compare Star Ratings ----------------------------- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid services (CMS) released new data on its hospital compare website in November 2023, and St. Luke's Monroe Campus received a five out of five-star rating. The star ratings are comprised of quality measures including mortality, readmission, safety of care, patient experiences, effectiveness and timeliness of care, and efficient use of imaging. COMMUNITY OUTREACH ===================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) identified Monroe County at or worse than state standards for food insecurity, mental health, children in poverty, high school graduation and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Pocono Mountain School District (PMSD) serves as a hub in the community where CHWs can build trust to improve access to care, services and resources. The St. Luke's Monroe State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on November 14, 2022 and engaged 38 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. The overarching top priority that emerged from the results of the 2022 CHNA was access to care. This prioritizes access to primary care, mental health, dental care and other services, with an emphasis on promoting connections to care for underserved communities. Strategies to target vulnerable populations include a comprehensive approach in our urban and rural communities and school-based efforts in high-need schools and school districts. Schools serve as a hub in the community and provide sustainable access points to connect with students, families and the surrounding community. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) worked in partnership with Pocono Mountain School District (PMSD) to improve access and connections to school physicals, vaccinations, education and resources. St. Luke's facilitated CareerLinking Academy, partnering with Monroe CareerLink and Pocono Mountain West High School to integrate observational learning experiences with career development sessions. The goal of the CareerLinking Academy is to provide high school students with exposure to a variety of career options in healthcare and maximize their future professional options. Nine students during FY 23 completed the program. The CareerLinking Academy exposes students from diverse backgrounds to careers in the healthcare industry, helps them gain insight into clinical and non-clinical roles, teaches them job-keeping and job-seeking skills, helps them understand future employment opportunities and builds confidence in their abilities. Additionally, the PMSD partnership has measurably improved food access to families in need. Since the partnership was established in March 2022, nearly 300 students and their families have received support and services. These partnerships provide an opportunity to further improve access by expanding impact and reach to the Mountain Center in Tobyhanna, PA. The Mountain Center is home to Pocono Services for Family and Children (PSFC), a single resource for family assistance that connects people with services to help support and improve the social determinants of health (e.g., food, housing, education) in a centralized location. The Mountain Center is a hub in the community that provides social services to help improve the social determinants of health (e.g., food, housing), including a St. Luke's Family Medicine practice, government services and more. The Star Community Health mobile dental van partnership provided services at The Mountain Center five times during FY 23 and engaged 56 patients in need of dental care. The St. Luke's Family Practice located at The Mountain Center held community health trainings. The St. Luke's Family Practice-Tobyhanna staff and providers were trained in the national oral health Smiles for Life curriculum to provide oral health assessments, education and fluoride varnish as well as tobacco cessation services including Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT). Additionally, connection to care, services and resources related to the social determinants of health continue to be promoted through findhelp, a self-navigation online platform utilized by Star Community Health and St. Luke's to help community members connect with local partners. The most frequent searches include food pantries, outpatient treatment, waivers and food delivery. This past year 64 partners were added and 38 partners were officially "claimed" (i.e., vetted their organization's information on the site and are trained to update their listing moving forward as needed) across Monroe County including transportation and food access partners. Preventing Chronic Disease: St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), in partnership with Josie Porter Farm, donated 116 shares of fresh fruits and vegetables to a cancer support community and Feeding Families Ministry food bank. The older adult meals program at St. Luke's Monroe Campus provided 1,642 meals during FY 23. Pocono Mountain High School and Middle School food pantries served nearly 300 students through more than 1,100 encounters. The high school food pantries are organized and staffed by our school-based athletic trainers who are also cross trained as Community Health Workers. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY 23 at the St. Luke's Monroe Campus in collaboration with Carbon/Monroe Substance Use Task Force. The Department of Community Health partnered with the Opioid Task Force and Pocono Mountain United Way to support harm reduction services. Narcan education and distribution was provided during FY 23 and SilverCloud, an evidence-based wellbeing and behavioral health online platform with local social work support, was available through St. Luke's Monroe County physician practices. During FY 23, 808 pounds of unused medications were safely disposed of in Safe Medication Disposal boxes at St. Luke's Monroe Campus. Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) school-based mental health counseling and a student Avedium club provided messaging and support students need. Partnership Collaboration: - CareerLink partnership Career Mentoring and Workforce Development (On-the-Job Training expansion) to Pocono Mountain School District - Carbon, Monroe, Pike Drug and Alcohol partnership - Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition - Homeless and Food Access committees including improving 211 connections and strategized process for our partners and vulnerable community members to access resources and assistance - Meals on Wheels - Monroe County School Districts - Monroe County Interagency Council - Monroe County Pathways Coalition (MCPC) - Monroe Opioid Task Force - Monroe Suicide Prevention Task Force - Pocono Mountain United Way - Pocono Services for Family and Children - Star Community Health connection to services, including dental - Substance/Opioid Use Disorder Connection to Treatment - Substance Use Disorder (SUD) response and harm reduction - The Mountain Center - United Way COVID Response - Warm Hand Off (WHO) Initiatives SPONSORSHIP =========== In FY 23, St Luke's Monroe Campus provided community sponsorships to the following organizations serving our mutual community populations in need: - Bangor Area School District - D11 Sports.com - Delaware Valley Regional High School - East Coast Sandhogs - East Stroudsburg Area School District - Nativity BVM High School - Notre Dame East Stroudsburg - Panther Valley School District - Pen Argyl Area School District - Pleasant Valley School District - Pocono Mountain School District - Stroudsburg Area School District - Tulpehocken Area School District - Youth Association of Pocono Mountain VOLUNTEERS =========== In FY 23, St. Luke's Monroe Campus volunteers provided 5,451 volunteer hours. ======================================================================== ST. LUKE'S QUAKERTOWN HOSPITAL (ST. LUKE'S QUAKERTOWN AND UPPER BUCKS CAMPUSES) --------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital comprises two St. Luke's University Health Network Campuses in Upper Bucks County, doing business as (d/b/a) St. Luke's Hospital - Quakertown Campus and St. Luke's Hospital - Upper Bucks Campus. Established in 1929, St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital was acquired by nationally recognized St. Luke's University Health Network (network) in 1995. The newly constructed St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus opened in the fall of 2019. St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) provides services primarily to residents of Bucks, Montgomery and Lehigh counties. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital annually provides care for more than 100,000 patients and is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an internal revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) provides medically necessary health care services to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in the Internal Revenue ruling (IRS) ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) provide medically necessary health care services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) operates an active emergency department, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year, for all persons; 3) St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) maintains an open medical staff with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital rests with its Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors of St. Luke's University Health Network, Inc. D.B.A. St. Luke's University Health Network. Both boards comprise a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care, programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) as demonstrated through the factors outlined above and additional information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization benefit any private individual, nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital (St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses) is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers, and - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. In FY 23, St. Luke's Quakertown Campus and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus combined had 6,375 observations and admissions, 24,242 emergency room visits and 130,096 total outpatient registrations. St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus ----------------------------- St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus is a Joint Commission-accredited, not-for-profit, acute care hospital in the Quakertown area, Bucks County, Pennsylvania with 89 licensed beds. In March 2023, the campus opened a three-story addition that more than doubled the size of the hospital. The $79 million project adds more than 117,275 square-feet of space dedicated to state-of-the-art cancer care and the new Women & Babies Pavilion. There is also room for expansion. For the first two months of the fiscal year, there were 96 obstetric cases at St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus, a 47% increase (31 births) over previous year. Primary zip code areas of increase are from Harleysville, Souderton and Perkasie. Since the newly expanded Cancer Center opened in March, the Infusion Center has reached new volumes of treatments. In August, a record of 765 infusion treatments were performed. Fiscal year to date volume for infusion increased 36% over last fiscal year through August. Radiation Oncology, a new service for the Upper Bucks Campus, began treatment of its first patient on March 27, 2023. Radiation oncology volumes for August set a record with 44 treatments. Most of the treatments being delivered are for breast and prostate cancer. St. Luke's Upper Bucks instituted the Senior Meals program on September 11, 2023. The low-cost meal program allows people 65 and over to receive a meal at the Upper Bucks cafeteria Monday through Friday. The program has been very successful with a high of 40 meals distributed in one night. The program has been communicated through multiple social media platforms to the community. St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital ------------------------------ Established in 1929, St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital was acquired by nationally recognized St. Luke's University Health Network (network) in 1995. St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital houses one of only two behavioral health units in Bucks County, and the only one in Upper Bucks County. The behavioral health unit (BHU) provides effective psychiatric care in a safe and therapeutic environment for people with a wide variety of mental and behavioral health issues including anger management, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and work/life balance. The unit meets the growing demand for behavioral health services while keeping patients near family, friends and support systems throughout their treatment. In FY 23, the unit was expanded to add 13 beds for a total of 32. This will help to meet the needs of the local community. The behavioral health unit (BHU) provides effective psychiatric care in a safe and therapeutic environment for people with a wide variety of mental and behavioral health issues including anger management, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and work/life balance. The unit meets the growing demand for behavioral health services while keeping patients near family, friends and support systems throughout their treatment. In addition, the campus offers the following essential outpatient services: - Lab Services - Radiology - Infusion - Wound Care - Pulmonary Function Testing - Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation - Davita Dialysis - Outpatient Nutrition Services - EEG/EMG - Sleep Center A medical office building at the campus remains. Specialty services provided by St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital, comprising hospital - Upper Bucks campus and St. Luke's Hospital - Quakertown Campus - Behavioral Health - Cardiology - Cardiac/Pulmonary Rehabilitation - Dialysis and Hemodialysis - Emergency Services - Endocrinology - In-Crisis Services - Infusion Services - Labor and Delivery - Nephrology - Neurology/Neurosurgery - Oncology/Hematology - Orthopedics - Obstetrics and Gynecology - Otolaryngology/ENT - Pain Management - Pulmonology - Radiology (Advanced) - Sleep Disorders - Sports Medicine, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation - Surgery (General and Laparoscopic) - Urgent Care - Urology - Vascular Services - Women's Health - Wound Management The hospital has significantly expanded medical expertise through the addition of the following services: - OB/GYN services, with the addition of the new St. Luke's Stoneridge practice there has been significant increase in the access to quality women's care - Orthopedic surgeons providing the most advanced diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for patients with musculoskeletal disorders and injuries - A highly trained cardiac vascular team including experienced and skilled cardiologists, vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists - Oncologists and a wide range of oncology specialists. St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus offers outpatient visits and surgical capabilities with the region's foremost gynecologic oncologist - Increased the presence of neurology & pediatrics in the Upper Bucks market - Level IV Trauma Center ---------------------- In fall of 2020, the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation (PTSF) extended the St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus' Adult Level IV Trauma Accreditation for four years, the maximum timeframe allowed. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
As a level IV trauma center, the specialty-trained providers at St. Luke's Upper Bucks provide initial evaluation, stabilization and diagnostic testing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for people with severe injuries. Mild to moderately injured patients may remain at the St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus, allowing them to receive care and to recover within their community and close to their families. Emergency department physicians and staff are well equipped and skilled to evaluate and treat trauma patients and rapidly transfer those patients requiring a higher level of care to St. Luke's Level I Trauma Center in nearby Bethlehem. In FY 23, St. Luke's Quakertown Campus volunteers provided 4,325 volunteer hours and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus volunteers provided more than 11,525 volunteer hours. Quality Recognition =================== St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital, including St. Luke's Quakertown and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campuses, was recognized by numerous rating organizations in FY 23. Leapfrog: The Leapfrog Group brought together publicly available data about hospital safety to calculate a hospital safety score which includes measures related to surgical complications, hospital associated conditions/infections, patient experience, intensive care unit (ICU) physician staffing, hand hygiene, surgical volumes, computerized physician order entry and safe practices. St. Luke's Quakertown Campus' letter grade for the fall 2021 reporting period was "a." Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center Reaccreditation Survey: The Joint Commission was onsite September 2022. for the primary stroke center reaccreditation survey. The program was successfully reaccredited for two years. Stroke - Get with the Guidelines: St. Luke's Quakertown Campus was awarded the 2022 Get with the Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus with Honor Roll Elite and Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll. This award recognizes compliance with meeting stroke core measures and applying the most up-to-date evidence-based treatment guidelines to improve patient care and outcomes for the patients and community we serve. Hospital Compare Star Ratings: St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital received a four out of five-star rating. The star ratings are comprised of quality measures including mortality, readmission, safety of care, patient experience, effectiveness and timeliness of care, and efficient use of imaging. Hernia Center of Excellence: St. Luke's Quakertown Campus was re-designated a Center of Excellence in Hernia Surgery (COEHS) by surgical review corporation in 2022. Emanuel Nogueira, MD, and Andrew Brown, MD, also earned the Surgeon of Excellence in Hernia Surgery (SOEHS) designation in 2022. Nursing Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders (NICHE): St. Luke's Upper Bucks Hospital and St. Luke's Quakertown Hospital are NICHE designated hospitals. Community Outreach ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums, and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research, and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services, and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access, and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) identified Bucks County at or worse than state standards for excessive drinking, low birthweight, severe housing problems, and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Our strategic priorities include improving access to care and reducing health disparities, promoting healthy lifestyles, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Our primary areas of activity connect youth and the homeless or near homeless populations to primary care, provide targeted workforce development, and decrease the percentage of patients with poor control of their diabetes. Secondary areas include enhancing student public health education, supporting youth literacy, exposure to health career pathways, improving availability of healthy food and hygiene products, and increasing smoking cessation. The St. Luke's Quakertown and Upper Bucks Campuses State of the Community CHNA findings meeting was held on October 11, 2023, and engaged more than 34 local partners. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. Additionally, CHNA updates were provided to community partners at the Helping Upper Bucks Become Universally Better (HUBBUB) meeting in May 2023. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease, and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: Both our internal and external partnerships have focused on both these primary and secondary activities. Connection to primary care has been facilitated through these partnerships. Health physicals, vaccines, and health education are additional services provided. Protocols were developed to provide housing opportunities for patients discharged following inpatient hospitalization. The Quakertown/Upper Bucks Campuses have participated as sites for local schools' career development programs. The Quakertown Campus serves as a site for diabetes education. Public health education was supported through community health activities with students in medical school, public health, nursing (community health), and residencies. Access to healthy food and hygiene products were promoted through both internal and external partnerships. During Fiscal Year 2023 there was a focus on assisting community partners in claiming their services in the Find Help Directory, initially focusing on transportation and food access. SLUHN utilizes findhelp, a self-navigation online platform to help community members connect with local partners. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. Quakertown Community School District Partnership (QCSD): The Star Community Health dental van was located at Quakertown Elementary School one day/month during FY23, with 46 unique patients receiving care. Services in FY24 will expand to include Strayer Middle School. St. Luke's, Bucks County Health Improvement Partnership, Bucks County Health Department, and Little Big Health partnered to provide required vaccinations to students at QCSD, with 14 students receiving a total of 49 vaccines in FY23. This collaboration is supported through a partnership between QCSD and the Bucks County Health Department. A vision voucher process was established in QCSD for students to obtain vision exam and glasses at Quakertown Eye Associates through the Trumbauersville Lions Club. The Medical Career Pathways Program (MCP) continued in its ninth year, providing adolescent mentoring for high school students interested in a career in healthcare. During FY23 there were 22 students participating from Quakertown, Palisades, and Upper Perkiomen School Districts. Districts. Both Star Community health and SLUHN utilize findhelp, a self-navigation online platform to help community members connect with local partners. As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Literacy promotion through Read across America in FY 23 was a partnership with First Book/Nonprofit focused on education equity for kids in need. At Quakertown and Upper Bucks Campuses, in person readings were held at two schools (31 classrooms and approximately 715 students). Resources were provided to two libraries and six school districts (16 schools). Preventing Chronic Disease: Summer meals program in partnership with Free Fall Action Sports and Quakertown Community School District. A total of 3,652 meals were served in Quakertown for the summer with weekly distribution of weekend bags and 50 Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares. The program received funding from Penn Community Bank and the Drueding Foundation. The Open Link's Summer Meals Program for Upper Perkiomen School District was supported with 30 CSA shares. An additional 15 CSA shares were donated to the Open Link and Penn Foundation's Independent Living. The SLUHN Smoking Cessation Program ended its third year with 1,429 referrals, a 13% increase from FY 2022, and a 16% increase in completed appointments. Both the Pulmonology and Surgical Optimization Clinic served Quakertown/Upper Bucks with virtual visits available. BCHIP held it's Quit Smoking class at the Quakertown Campus and virtually, providing free nicotine replacement therapy to participants. Through the BCHIP program 111 SLUHN patients were served. A weekly smoking cessation support group was held virtually for SLUHN patients and the community. During FY23 there were 45 students engaged in the Pennridge Community Partnership Vaping Program. For physical activity promotion, Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY23 at the St. Luke's Quakertown and Upper Bucks Campuses in collaboration with Bucks County Drug and Alcohol Commission and Bucks County Connect, Assess, Refer, Engage, Support (BCARES). During FY 23 there were 1,455 unduplicated patients with a SUD diagnosis, with 1,652 total patient encounters for SUD. The most common substances addressed included alcohol (734), marijuana (356), opioids (278) and psychostimulants (226). Through our Community School partnerships, Your Emotional Strength Supported (YESS!) school-based mental health counseling and a student Avedium club provided messaging and support to students in need. The Penn Foundation Substance Use Prevention/Recovery Education was provided to a total of 2,440 middle and high school students. A total of 64 presentations took place at eight schools. Additionally, four "Mental Health Matters" community sessions were held with more than 100 participants in total. NAMI Bucks Teen/Parent Support Group was implemented to support families and the Bucks County Suicide Prevention Task Force created an Awareness, Suicide Prevention Wall to support stigma reduction. Partnership Collaboration: - Free Farmers Market in partnership with Bucks County Opportunity Council, Fresh Connect, Rolling Harvest Food - Rescue, Quakertown Borough Parks & Recreation and Quakertown School District serves approximately 240 families. - Bucks County Health Improvement Partnership (BCHIP) with a collaborative focus on health education, health promotion and screening activities. FY 2023 priorities included food access, discharge housing processes, fall prevention, smoking cessation - Helping Upper Bucks Be Universally Better (HUBBUB): working with local organizations and agencies with a common goal of assisting those in need. Additional key partnerships include Advocates for Homelessness of Bucks County (AHUB); A Woman's Place; Bucks County Health Department; Bucks County Suicide Task Force; Career Link; Head Start; Indian Valley, Upper Bucks, and Upper Perkiomen Chamber of Commerce; Family Service Association of Bucks County; Pennsylvania State Police; Maternity Care Coalition, Quakertown Alive; Quakertown Borough; Quakertown Food Pantry; United Way of Bucks County, Upper Bucks and Upper Perkiomen YMCA, and local school districts Sponsorship ============ The hospital pursues expanded relationships and health improvement advocacy with the communities it serves through various coalition-building activities. In FY 23, St. Luke's Quakertown Campus and St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus sponsored community organizations, including, but not limited to, the following: - Borough of Quakertown - Coopersburg Historical Society - Quakertown Alive - Quakertown Community Outreach - Montgomery County Community College - Quakertown School District - Salem Christian School - Southern Lehigh School District - Upper Perkiomen School District ========================================================================== ST. LUKE'S WARREN CAMPUS ------------------------ St. Luke's Warren Hospital is a joint commission-accredited, not-for-profit, 198-licensed bed acute care hospital located in Phillipsburg, Warren County, New Jersey, providing care primarily to residents of Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey and the city of Easton in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. St. Luke's Warren Hospital, Inc. is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an internal revenue code section 501(c) (3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Warren Campus provides medically necessary health care service to all individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin or ability to pay. Moreover, St. Luke's Warren Campus operates consistently with the following criteria outlined in IRS revenue ruling 69-545: 1) St. Luke's Warren Campus provides medically necessary health care services to all individuals regardless of ability to pay, including charity care, self-pay, Medicare and Medicaid patients; 2) St. Luke's Warren Campus operates an active emergency room for all persons; which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days per year; 3) St. Luke's Warren Campus maintains an open medical staff with privileges available to all qualified physicians; 4) Control of St. Luke's Warren Campus rests with its Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of St. Luke's Health Network, Inc., d.b.a. St. Luke's University Health Network. Both boards are comprised of a majority of independent civic leaders and other prominent members of the community, as well as physicians on the hospital/network medical staff; and 5) Surplus funds are used to improve the quality of patient care, expand and renovate facilities and advance medical care, programs and activities. The operations of St. Luke's Warren Campus, as shown through the factors outlined above and other information contained herein, clearly demonstrate that the use and control of St. Luke's Warren Campus is for the benefit of the public and that no part of the income or net earnings of the organization inures to the benefit of any private individual nor is any private interest being served other than incidentally. Mission ======= The mission of St. Luke's Warren Campus is to care for the sick and injured regardless of their ability to pay, improve our communities' overall health, and educate our health care professionals. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the patient our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided to heal the sick and injured. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff and volunteers, and - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. Overview ======== Founded in 1923, St. Luke's Warren Campus was acquired by nationally recognized St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) in 2012. Since that time, St. Luke's has continuously improved the quality of, and access to, care. St. Luke's Warren Campus currently provides patients with access to more than 475 physicians across nearly 60 medical specialties. In FY 23, St. Luke's Warren Campus provided care for 5,115 admissions and observations, 28,199 emergency department visits and 130,972 outpatient visits. St. Luke's Warren Campus is certified as a Primary Stroke Center by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services. The St. Luke's Warren Campus is part of St. Luke's Integrated Network Cancer Program (INCP), which is accredited with commendation by the American College of Surgeons. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
St. Luke's Warren Campus offers wound management services, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), which is accredited by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society. The hospital received additional payment in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Value-Based Purchasing Program, performing better than peer hospitals in New Jersey. St. Luke's Warren Campus continues to participate in the New Jersey Department of Health & Seniors Services Public Reporting Initiative. Performance improvement teams work to continuously improve the process of care provided to patients suffering from a heart attack, patients with pneumonia or health failure and those undergoing surgical procedures. The hospital's specialty services include but are not limited to the following: - Behavioral Health, Outpatient Care - Cardiology - Dermatology - Emergency Services - Endocrinology - Gastroenterology - Infectious Disease - Infusion Center - Nephrology - Neurology/Concussion Center - Ob/Gyn - Oncology/Hematology - Ophthalmology - Orthopedics - Otolaryngology/Ent - Pain Management - Palliative Care - Podiatry - Pulmonology - Radiology (Advanced) - Sleep Disorders - Speech Therapy - Sports Medicine, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Rehab - Surgery (General and Laparoscopic) - Surgical Oncology - Urology - Vascular - Weight Management Both Surgical and Medical - Women's Health - Wound Management & Hyperbaric Medicine The Network has invested approximately $109.3 million in technical and facility improvements at St. Luke's Warren Campus since 2012. This includes: $48.0 million in facility improvements and expansions (new interventional radiology/cardiac catheterization lab, intensive care unit, new infusion center, new medical/surgical units, renovations to operating rooms, renovations to emergency department, renovations to wound care, renovations to the pharmacy, expansion/relocation of outpatient therapy, cardiovascular expansion, outpatient radiology, outpatient lab and orthopedic services at Washington Outpatient Center and Hillcrest Plaza); $29.8M Hillcrest Mall Purchase; $4.7 million for two CT scanners, a MRI a 3D mammography unit, and two nuclear imaging cameras, all offering the latest available GE technology ($1.2 million for related construction/renovations); $3.8 million for information technology (it) upgrades; $1.6 million for an emergency generator, $18.5 million in other facility improvements and equipment, and over $500,000 making our campus covid-19 safe for our patients and employees by converting med surg units, intensive care and ed rooms to true isolation and installing plexi barriers throughout the campus. In FY 22, St. Luke's Warren Campus was the first hospital in New Jersey to provide Velyst robotic knee replacement. The hospital has significantly expanded medical expertise through the addition of the following services: - Direct access to gynecologic oncologists, oncology care and surgery. - Direct access to colorectal surgeons. - Direct access to sub-specialty neurologists. - Direct access to a highly trained cardiac team which includes experienced and skilled cardiologists, cardiac and vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists and electrophysiologists. Recognitions =========== - CMS 5-Star Rating for Quality of Care - Leapfrog Patient Safety Grade - A - Leapfrog Top Hospital Designation - American Heart Association Get with The Guidelines Gold Plus Target: Diabetes Award for Stroke Care Growth ======= - In FY 23, St. Luke's finalized the purchase the Hillcrest Plaza in Phillipsburg, N.J. for $29.8 million. Hillcrest Plaza currently houses 19 St. Luke's practices occupying 96,000 square feet. The Hillcrest Plaza is located on 19 acres and has 219,000 square feet of office space. - St. Luke's Warren Campus now offers knee replacement procedures using the new Velys Robotic-Assisted Solution RWJ Barnabas Health Collaboration ================================ St. Luke's Warren Campus and RWJ Barnabas Health continued discussions to identify and reduce health disparities in northwest NJ, share successes learned during the pandemic and to collaborate in academic and clinical research endeavors. Efforts have continued and the clinical affiliation has been automatically renewed. Community Outreach ================== St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Through our analysis of primary and secondary data, as well as the CHNA key informant interviews, forums and surveys with community members, we see significant issues facing our communities that impede healthy lifestyles. Our efforts in prevention, care transformation, research and partnerships help support our work to implement sustainable initiatives that focus on a wide range of health and quality of life outcomes. Through collaborations with community and Network partners, the Department of Community Health aims to promote a more equitable society with better health outcomes, especially within the Network's most vulnerable populations. Community Health Liaisons and Community Health Workers (CHW) help to build trust to improve access to care, services and resources. Pathways have been established and strengthened to connect families to primary care, social services, food access, financial literacy, career mentoring and workforce development. St. Luke's Community Health's mission is to create pathways for equity toward measurable health outcomes through advocacy, access and navigation of resources for partners and underserved communities. We envision a community where everyone has access to exceptional healthcare built on a foundation of trust and compassion. St. Luke's Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) identified Warren County at or worse than state standards for food access, poor mental health days, adult obesity and poor physical health days, high school graduation and social associations outcomes. SLUHN Community Health Workers (CHWs) align with key partners to identify gaps and opportunities based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Schools, Coalition for Community School and Community Health Worker (CHW) models. Local school districts and primary care offices serve as hubs in the community where school-based staff and CHWs can build trust to improve access to care, services, trainings and resources. A Warren Campus Community Health Liaison, also crossed trained as a Community Health Workers (CHW), builds trust with partners on a consistent basis. Improved pathways have been developed for bringing local, fresh produce to patients and families through trusted community partners. Additional partners, such as Norwescap, have strengthened and coordinated processes to further connect families to social services that provide wrap-around opportunities with local non-profit organizations. The St. Luke's Warren Campus Annual Report to The Community & CHNA findings meeting was held on December 5, 2022, and engaged more than 73 local partners. This important input and feedback are integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives. Partner input and feedback was integrated into the strategy and response for implementing evidence-based community health initiatives in the communities we serve. Overall assessment results highlight three main priority focus areas for our community health initiatives that include improving access to care, preventing chronic disease and improving mental and behavioral health. Improving Access to Care: St. Luke's partnered with Phillipsburg School District to provide vaccinations, physicals and care. St. Luke's Sports Medicine worked with the Department of Community Health to implement vaping/smoking cessation education for Phillipsburg and Belvidere School District and Warren Technical School. Community Health assisted with reaching out to Patient Navigators to support improved access to care for community members. The St. Luke's Warren Campus Inpatient and Outpatient Case Management "NJ Community Health Resources" Channel provided information for patients. The Norwescap NJ Family Success Centers Future SHE Club (Successful Honorable Empowered) partnership with Olive & Grace Boutique hosted a pop-up shop in partnership with St. Luke's physicians. Community Connections: Community Health and Outpatient Care Management staff worked with Warren County "Project Homeless Connect" National Point-in-Time County, engaging 35 community members facing homelessness. Staff also worked with the Phillipsburg Free Public Library partnership with educational and literacy resources. SLUHN utilizes findhelp, a self-navigation online platform to help community members connect with local partners. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
As the COVID-19 pandemic started to decline during FY 23, the Department of Community Health continued to provide updated information and guidelines as well as provide vaccine confidence for local communities. The Food Access initiative continued to expand in the Warren Campus service area. A partnership with Norwecap Food Bank provided critical food access points for community members facing food insecurity. Literacy initiative included Read Across America in partnership with Pediatrics, Star Community Health and First Book Marketplace. In Phillipsburg School District, Phillipsburg Elementary School received support from nine St. Luke's Volunteers serving 205 students (3rd grade) and provided 200 literacy resources distributed to Phillipsburg Primary School. Career Mentoring and Workforce Development was implemented in FY 23 through the Lafayette Experience Mentoring Program with Phillipsburg & Easton Area High School students. The partnership worked to create a Healing Mural at the Easton Campus. Student Scholarships granted for future career and education pathways. PREVENTING CHRONIC DISEASE Food Access: Several food access initiatives helped to support the community. Norwescap Food Bank donated 4,377 pounds of produce to St. Luke's Coventry Family Practice for patients and Foodshed Alliance's LocalShare free pop-up produce markets at the St. Luke's Hillcrest Plaza served 212 families (648 individuals) with over 3,400 pounds of produce/ other goods and nearly 200 dozen farm fresh eggs in the first 2 months. St. Luke's Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) donated 45 shares to Phillipsburg Housing Authority from Clear Spring Farm. Physical Activity Promotion and Nutrition Education: Norwescap NJ Family Success Centers Future SHE Club and St. Luke's "Get Your Tail on the Trail" partnered to work with adolescents to have conversations about healthy eating and healthy living, mental health and access to primary care. For physical activity promotion, Get Your Tail on the Trail held events across the Network, with more than 14,000 individuals participating Network-wide. Improving Mental and Behavioral Health: St. Luke's Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Response Warm Hand Off (WHO) initiative was implemented during FY 23 at the St. Luke's Warren Campus in collaboration with Warren County Local Advisory Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (LACADA). The Warren County Mental Health Board provided trainings, including Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention. The Substance Use Disorder Network Committee and harm reduction including safe medication disposal boxes, drug take back day, naloxone education and distribution, stigma reduction. Partnership Collaboration: Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Star Community Health and Zufall Health Center, primary care and pediatric connection to care, dental hygiene and integrated behavioral health services. Firth Youth Center: Participates as a Board Member for the St. Luke's Warren Campus and provides educational, recreational and athletic opportunities for the vulnerable youth of Phillipsburg including food access, after-school care and LEAD (Learn, Education, Advocate, Develop) Phillipsburg Drug Free Community Coalition to decrease underage drinking, tobacco and marijuana use among youth. - New Jersey Rural Health Advisory Council and Northern New Jersey Rural Health Advisory Council Sub-Committee - North Jersey Health Collaborative Health Equity Symposium "Breaking Down Barriers and Building Bridges: Putting - Equity at the Center of Community Health" partnership with SLUHN - SNAP-Ed Warren County Hunger Coalition - United Way of Northern NJ & United Way 211 connection to resources and United in Care Steering Committee - Warren County Community Health Assessment Key Informant (St. Luke's Community Health - Epidemiologist and St. Luke's Warren Campus Community Health Liaison) - Warren County Community Health Initiatives Committee (CHIC) & Access to Care Sub-Group - Warren County Collaborators Meeting - Warren County Senior Services Provider Network Meeting - Warren County Department of Human Services (DHS) Children's Interagency Coordinating Council (CIACC) & Educational Partnership Subcommittee - Warren County Hispanic Coalition Sponsorship ========== The hospital pursues expanded relationships and health improvement advocacy with the communities it serves through various coalition-building activities, including, but not limited to, sponsorship, including, but not limited to the following: - ARC of Hunterdon County - Belvidere School District - Camelot for Children - Chamber of Commerce - North Hunterdon High School Education Foundation - North Jersey Health Collaborative - Norwescap - PBA (Philipsburg Police Dept) - Phillipsburg Rotary - Phillipsburg School District - Warren Hills School District - Warren County Farmers Fair - Warren County Hot Air Balloon Festivals Volunteers ========== In FY 22, St. Luke's Warren Campus volunteers provided more than 11,525 volunteer hours. ========================================================================== THE VISITING NURSE ASSOCIATION (VNA) OF ST. LUKE'S -------------------------------------------------- The Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) of St. Luke's is a member of the fully integrated St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN). The VNA, established in 1919, has been a member of the network since 1993. The VNA annually provides free community outreach services and programs, and in fiscal year 2023, those services and programs reached 5,279 people. St. Luke's Home Health ====================== St. Luke's Home Health provides intermittent skilled nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapies and medical social work and home health aide services to homebound patients. The care is medically directed, physician ordered and delivered to patients in their homes. Services are provided under a plan of treatment established and approved by a physician. During FY 23, approximately 67% of all patients admitted to home health services were referred to home health by a SLUHN network hospital. In FY 23, the VNA's unduplicated census totaled 5,170 patients in its home health program. Home health accepts Medicare, Medicaid and other third-party payers. Patients without insurance may qualify for services on a sliding scale under the St. Luke's University Health Network charity care policy. St. Luke's Hospice ================== Hospice services are provided to patients in their private residence, the home of a relative, a nursing facility or wherever the patient calls home. Hospice general in-patient (GIP) services are available at the hospices freestanding GIP facility, located on Black River Road in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. St. Luke's Hospice provides patients and their families with compassionate end-of-life care. Physical, as well as emotional and spiritual needs, are addressed by the hospice team. Respite for caregivers is also available. Services are provided by an interdisciplinary team, including a medical director, registered nurses, therapists, hospice aides, medical social workers, volunteers, chaplains and the patient's own physician. In FY 23, the hospice program provided end-of-life care to 2,051 patients in their home or in a skilled nursing facility; they also provided care to 394 patients at the hospice house where costs exceeded financial reimbursement levels by more than $2.7 m (excluding charitable contributions and earnings from endowment). St. Luke's Nurse-Family Partnership =================================== St. Luke's Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) is an evidence-based, nurse home visiting program to improve the health, wellbeing and economic self-sufficiency of low-income, first-time parents and their children. Care is provided in this voluntary prevention program by specially trained registered nurses beginning early in the mother's pregnancy and continuing until her child's second birthday. The nurse-family partnership served 428 families residing in the Lehigh Valley (encompassing the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton and the surrounding rural areas) during FY 23. Visiting Nurse Advocate for the County (VNAc) ============================================= The visiting nurse advocate for the county provides child health monitoring and child advocacy services to children living in troubled homes in Northampton and Lehigh counties, in southeastern Pennsylvania. In FY 23, services were provided to 110 families. Volunteers ========== There were 41 volunteers during FY 23. Volunteer hours for FY 23 totaled 2,750 hours of support to the VNA's programs. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
========================================================================= PENN FOUNDATION INC. -------------------- Penn Foundation, Inc. (D.B.A St. Luke's Penn Foundation) is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an internal revenue code section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Pursuant to its charitable purposes, St. Luke's Penn Foundation operates its campus in Sellersville, Bucks County as a community-based behavioral health provider with 25 mental health and substance use treatment programs that serve individuals in a non-discriminatory manner regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. In fiscal year 2022-2023 (FY 23), St. Luke's Penn Foundation served 10,341 individuals and delivered 162,260 services. St. Luke's Penn Foundation also contracted with 85 businesses to provide their Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Approximately, 807 employees used the EAP service, and the team provided more than 3,733 service hours of trainings, counseling, incident debriefings, and other consultative services. St. Luke's Penn Foundation manages the community petition site for crisis services for Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The petition site is located at St. Luke's Upper Bucks Campus (3000 St. Luke's Drive, Quakertown, PA 18951). St. Luke's Penn Foundation staff deliver crisis services in the Emergency Department at this campus. Additionally, a crisis line is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 215-257-6551. Mission ======= St. Luke's Penn Foundation, as part of the St. Luke's University Health Network, works to instill hope, inspire change, and build community as we provide compassionate, high quality, cost-effective mental health and substance use treatment to residents of the communities we serve, regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion or ability to pay. St. Luke's Penn Foundation is committed to excellence. Our clinical and administrative staff are dedicated to the provision of superior behavioral, developmental, and physical healthcare that is individualized and family centered, accessible and equitable. We compassionately support the ability of every individual to fully realize their emotional, physical, and spiritual potential. We promote the development of our staff by creating opportunities for education, achievement, and advancement. The mission will be accomplished by the following: - Making the client our highest priority. - Promoting healthy lifestyles and continuously improving care provided. - Coordinating and integrating services into a seamless, easily accessible system of care. - Improving the level of service provided throughout the network. - Ensuring all health care services are relevant to the needs of the community. - Striving to maximize the satisfaction of our patients, employees, medical staff, and volunteers. - Training allied health professionals, nursing and medical students, and residents and fellows and attracting them to practice within our network's service area. As a merged entity within the St. Luke's Network, St. Luke's Penn Foundation is part of one of the largest non-profit networks of inpatient and outpatient behavioral health services in eastern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey. Together, our combined services establish a comprehensive continuum of care to treat patients with mental health and substance use disorders. At the St. Luke's Penn Foundation campus, we operate one of Pennsylvania's first opioid use disorder centers of excellence. St. Luke's Penn Foundation is also an Aetna Institute of Quality and an Independence Blue Cross Center of Distinction. Investing in prevention education and serving as a community resource is a vital part of our programming. In fiscal year 2022-2023, St. Luke's Penn Foundation delivered 85 in-school presentations to more than 3,630 students in 12 schools throughout the Central Bucks, Palisades, Pennridge, Quakertown, Souderton, and Upper Perk school districts. Additionally, St. Luke's Penn Foundation provided 12 education presentations to nearly 270 community members on topics such as vaping/marijuana, mental health, substance use, and harm reduction. The St. Luke's Penn Foundation campus delivers services in person across multiple buildings on its main campus that spans 30 acres in Sellersville, West Rockhill Township, Bucks County, PA. Additionally, St. Luke's Penn Foundation serves clients through programs in neighboring communities, including: - Sellersville (Bucks County): Employee Assistance Program, Recovery Center Outpatient Services, Wellspring Clubhouse, Penn Gardens, Penn Villa - Souderton (Montgomery County): Intellectual Disabilities Supports Coordination - Colmar (Bucks County): Recovery Center Outpatient Services - Pottstown (Montgomery County): Assertive Community Treatment - Exton (Chester County): Assertive Community Treatment - North Wales (Montgomery County): Employee Assistance Program - Bethlehem (Northampton County): Employee Assistance Program - Bristol (Bucks County): Mobile Engagement Services St. Luke's Penn Foundation compassionate staff of 356 dedicated professionals care for children, adolescents, and adults through 25 unique programs and the office locations noted above as well as community-based work and telehealth. St. Luke's Penn Foundation delivers integrated, holistic care designed to meet the unique needs of each person. FY 23 Program Highlights and Accomplishments -------------------------------------------- In our second year of being part of the St. Luke's University Health Network, we made significant progress toward our shared vision of maintaining and developing a full continuum of high-quality, integrated, and cost-effective behavioral health and substance use disorder services. Together, we grew programs and expanded to new markets, improved access to care, provided career advancement opportunities, and recruited and retained quality staff, all of which are critical to keeping pace with the increasing demand for behavioral healthcare. This past year, we worked to align operations and develop an integrated behavioral health strategic plan to guide us as we worked to ensure seamless access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment throughout the Network. Our eight goals focus not only on the provision of high quality, accessible care but also on addressing the challenges and barriers that impact the delivery of these services. 1. Become a "Destination Workplace" for Behavioral Health/Substance Use Disorder professionals in the region and beyond. 2. Advocate for sustainable reimbursement models and other sources of funding. 3. Modify the organizational structure so that it is optimized for Network-wide growth. 4. Assure financial sustainability through increased revenues and cost efficiency. 5. Develop a unified brand that encapsulates the strengths of the clinical and education programs that form the Network's BH/SUD services. 6. Assure patients have timely access to services by leveraging alternative care models. 7. Expand traditional and integrated services across the Network. 8. Deploy awareness campaigns to highlight depth and breadth of services and to reduce stigma. Over the past year, St. Luke's Penn Foundation worked to address gaps in behavioral healthcare by expanding programs and further integrating its services throughout the entire St. Luke's Network. This has increased access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment, resulting in more comprehensive care and better outcomes. St. Luke's Penn Foundation received a grant for more than $530,000 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to enhance veteran suicide prevention services in Carbon County. Carbon County is home to 8% of Pennsylvania's veterans and has the highest suicide rate among veterans in the state. Since the program launched in the spring of 2023, it has served 34 veterans and their families, surpassing the initial goal of 27. Additionally, the program has outreached to more than 350 veterans through community events, places of worship, libraries, the American Legion, and VFWs and has initiated its own outreach events such as Ruck 'n Reflect and Walk with a Vet. In the second year of a two-year, $3.9 million grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to implement the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) model of care delivery, St. Luke's Penn Foundation made significant strides in expanding outreach, training staff, and connecting individuals to treatment. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Highlights include the expansion of the Advisory Council, which is now 67% comprised of clients or family members of clients; outreach to 701 individuals to provide information about available programs and provide screenings around trauma and suicide risk and Navigation Services supported 419 of those individuals with connecting to care; training of 119 staff member on topics including trauma, suicide prevention, care management for physical health, leadership, and culturally competent care for veterans and active-duty military personnel; and more. Three years after COVID forced the Recovery Center to reduce its census for the health and safety of individuals seeking inpatient drug and alcohol treatment, the Recovery Center returned to operating at its full 55-bed capacity. Through funding from the Bucks County Drug and Alcohol Commission, Bucks County Behavioral Health, and Magellan, the MES team opened a new office in Bristol (Bucks County). The program expects to serve 300 individuals in the first year, focusing on older adults, adolescents, and individuals who are homeless. St. Luke's Penn Foundation has expanded its Warm Handoff Program (WHO) to all of St. Luke's hospital Emergency Departments. The program works to connect individuals to treatment after arriving in the Emergency Department following an overdose. Additionally, individuals coming through the WHO program at one of St. Luke's Emergency Departments can now be admitted to St. Luke's Penn Foundation's Recovery Center 24/7. St. Luke's Penn Foundation's Overview of Programs ------------------------------------------------- The Mental Health Outpatient program provides comprehensive evaluations, counseling, and medication management for individuals, couples, and families presenting with mental health and co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) is a person-centered approach to care for adults 18 years of age and older who have a severe mental illness. By blending the disciplines of psychiatry, psychology, nursing, addiction, social work and psychosocial rehabilitation, the program offers a multidisciplinary team of professionals that works together to provide highly individualized treatment, outreach, rehabilitation, and support services in individuals' homes and communities. St. Luke's Penn Foundation operates three ACT teams: one in Sellersville (Bucks County), one in Pottstown (Montgomery County), and one in Exton (Chester County. Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The ACT team in Sellersville serves residents of upper Bucks County and the Lansdale, Souderton, and Telford areas of Montgomery County. Admission requirements for Bucks County residents include involvement with the legal system or time spent in Bucks County prison. The Recovery Center offers a comprehensive continuum of inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol services. The 55-bed onsite inpatient unit offers detoxification and rehabilitation in a structured environment. Outpatient options include general outpatient (individual, family, and group counseling), Intensive Outpatient Services (IOP), which involves individual and group counseling up to nine hours per week, and Mobile Engagement Services, a community-based addiction intervention service for individuals and families who fail to access or respond to traditional drug and alcohol treatment. The Center of Excellence offers a dedicated care management team to follow individuals that have been impacted by the opioid epidemic for one year. The care management team is comprised of various specialties to help provide comprehensive care and resources to increase the prevalence of recovery and maintaining whole health. The Warm Hand-Off program in Montgomery County and the BCARES (Bucks County Connect Assess Refer Engage Support) program in Bucks County operate in partnership with our county drug and alcohol agencies. The programs are designed to create support for overdose survivors presenting to the local emergency departments. A dedicated rapid access team works to connect individuals to treatment and to support their family members. St. Luke's Penn Foundation operates the Warm Hand-Off program at Abington Hospital - Jefferson Health and Abington-Lansdale Hospital and the BCARES program at Grand View Health, Doylestown Health, and St. Luke's Upper Bucks. Camp Crossroads is an addiction prevention program for youth ages 9 through 12 who have been impacted by addiction in their families. Camp Crossroads aims to break this cycle of addiction by teaching children coping skills that build resiliency and confidence to make healthy life choices. The goal of camp is to reduce feelings of fear, guilt, isolation, loneliness, and helplessness and help campers understand that addiction is a disease, it impacts the entire family, and it is not their fault. Campers are also able to participate in selected organized activities such as crafts, sports, water activities, and adventure education. Intellectual Disabilities Supports Coordination locates, coordinates, and monitors services and resources for adults and children with intellectual disabilities. This service aims to educate clients and their families about available resources and empower them to make decisions regarding their care and everyday lives in the community. St. Luke's Penn Foundation contracts with Wellness Recovery Team for integrated care that supports clients who need help coordinating primary care and other physical health services in addition to their behavioral health care. We work closely with providers across the St. Luke's Network to help identify high utilizers of emergency departments and collaborate closely with them to understand how we can help provide integrated care to treat them in the community and reduce readmissions. This program is funded by both Bucks and Montgomery counties. Peer Support is a unique program partnering Certified Peer Specialists with individuals receiving behavioral health services who desire such mentoring as a key intervention in their recovery. Peer Support facilitates empowerment and self-determination in a variety of way including advocacy, psychoeducation, exposure to and the development of natural supports, community integration opportunities, and skill acquisition related to the recovery of meaningful daily activity and community roles. Mental health Case Management (Administrative and Blended Case Management/Recovery Coaching) helps individuals and families in locating, choosing, and accessing community resources such as housing, financial benefits/entitlements, employment and educational opportunities, etc. to further their recovery. Longer-term assistance is provided to children, young adults, and adults with serious mental health or co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders through Blended Case Management to maximize their potential for independent community living, improved educational/vocational status, increased social support networks, and reduced psychiatric hospitalizations. Individuals registered with Blended Case Management have contact with their case manager/recovery coach based on their level of need. The minimum level of contact is once every 30 days but may be more frequent depending on the individual's needs/wishes for assistance. Blended Case Management also offers a 24-hour, 7 days-a-week on-call support to individuals who are in crisis. HealthConnections helps individuals to improve their physical and behavioral health care by working as a team with their primary care provider, their other physical and behavioral health care providers, and their physical and behavioral health care plans. Participants work closely with a nurse navigator and behavioral health navigator who ensure communication across healthcare providers, provide health and wellness education, and assist in accessing needed health services. REACH - IPR (Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation) assists individuals with mental health or co-occurring mental health and substance use issues in setting and achieving personal goals in their living, learning, working and social environments. Services are intensive and time-limited, combining structured class time with individual appointments taking place within the community. Over the course of two years, individuals work through five phases: 1. Readiness Assessment, 2. Readiness Development, 3. Goal Choosing, 4. Goal Achievement, and 5. Goal Keeping. Wellspring Clubhouse is a voluntary social, educational and vocational rehabilitation program that promotes recovery and instills hope among members with mental health and/or co-occurring substance use challenges. It features a work-ordered day and member leadership and involvement in all aspects of the program. |
| CORE FORM, PART III, STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
Members work side-by-side with staff as colleagues in three work units - Health and Wellness, Member Services, and Career Development, to learn or teach skills, and to offer support and resources needed to achieve a satisfying and improved quality of life in the community. Penn Villa is an integrated community providing housing support for adults with major mental illnesses and adults with co-occurring mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders. Within a caring community of current tenants, alumni, and committed staff, independence, personal growth, and holistic recovery are facilitated. Penn Villa serves eight individuals in its group home and 15 individuals within five townhomes. The Village of Hope is a temporary housing program for homeless adults in Bucks County who have been diagnosed with both a mental health and substance abuse disorder. The goal of the program is to provide a supportive, recovery-oriented environment for those who voluntarily wish to recover from substance abuse and mental health issues. Residents learn skills necessary for successful re-entry into the mainstream of life. Two houses - one for men and one for women - each serve up to eight individuals and offer 24/7 staff support. Family Based Services provides 32 weeks of intensive community and home-based therapy and support for children and adolescents (up to age 21) with emotional and behavioral problems and their families. Children and adolescents in this program are typically at risk for out-of-home placement. Services focus on working with the family to successfully maintain the child in the home. Interventions include in-home therapy, casework services, family support services and 24/7 crisis management. Early Intervention services are designed to help families with children, from birth to age three, with developmental delays. Services, which include assessment, treatment planning, referral, and coordination of services, are individualized based upon the needs of each child and the child's family and are provided in the child's home, daycare center, or other settings familiar to the family. Staff members work with each family to provide them with strategies and ideas that they can easily incorporate into their child's existing routines. Pastoral Services provides direct chaplaincy services to all clients and residents requesting spiritual care. It is non-denominational in nature and is available to persons of all faiths. Pastoral Services also provides community education and consultation for pastors, chaplains, and lay leaders who seek mental health, drug and alcohol, and co-occurring disorders information or referrals. Furthermore, Pastoral Services offers a nationally accredited Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program to improve the quality of ministry and pastoral care offered by spiritual caregivers of all faiths in the community. St. Luke's Penn Foundation's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a proactive business tool that can help employees better manage the stressors they experience personally or in the workplace. Additionally, through coaching, training, and management consultation, EAP gives company leaders and managers the skills they need to create a healthier, more balanced work environment and successfully address issues with employees. |
| CORE FORM, PART V; QUESTION 1A & CORE FORM, PART VII; SECTION B |
THE ORGANIZATION IS THE PARENT ENTITY OF THE ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK ("NETWORK"); A TAX-EXEMPT INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE DELIVERY NETWORK. THE ORGANIZATION'S FORM 990 REFLECTS NO TOP FIVE INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS FOR SERVICES AND REPORTS THAT NO FORMS 1099 WERE FILED WITH THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE ("IRS"). ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA, A RELATED INTERNAL REVENUE CODE SECTION 501(C)(3) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATION PAYS ALL OUTSTANDING ACCOUNTS PAYABLE INVOICES ON BEHALF OF THIS ORGANIZATION. IN CONJUNCTION WITH THIS SERVICE, ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA ALSO PREPARES AND ISSUES FORMS 1099 TO THESE VENDORS RECEIVING PAYMENTS WHERE APPLICABLE AND FILES THESE FORMS 1099 WITH THE IRS. ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA ALLOCATES THESE PAYMENTS TO THE ORGANIZATION VIA AN INTERCOMPANY ACCOUNT. |
| CORE FORM, PART V; QUESTION 15 |
DURING THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 2023, RICHARD A. ANDERSON, ROBERT E. MARTIN AND JOEL D. FAGERSTORM SERVED AS OFFICERS AND WERE INVOLVED IN THE LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT OF THIS ORGANIZATION ON A FULL TIME BASIS. ALTHOUGH THESE INDIVIDUALS RECEIVE A FEDERAL FORM W-2 FROM ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM PENNSYLVANIA (EIN: 23-1352213). THEIR COMMON LAW EMPLOYER/EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP IS WITH ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. ACCORDINGLY, THIS ORGANIZATION FILED A 2022 FEDERAL FORM 4720 WHICH INCLUDED A REMITTANCE OF EXCISE TAX RELATED TO EACH INDIVIDUAL'S COMPENSATION IN EXCESS OF $1M. |
| CORE FORM, PART VI, SECTION A; QUESTION 3 |
THE ORGANIZATION IS AN INTERNAL REVENUE CODE SECTION 501(C)(3) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATION AND SERVES AS THE PARENT ORGANIZATION OF ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK ("NETWORK"); A TAX-EXEMPT INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE DELIVERY NETWORK. AS THE PARENT ORGANIZATION ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. PROVIDES VARIOUS CORPORATE RELATED SERVICES FOR THE BENEFIT OF VARIOUS NETWORK ENTITIES. THESE CORPORATE SERVICES, INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO, EXECUTIVE, LEGAL AND RISK MANAGEMENT, COMPLIANCE AND GOVERNANCE, HUMAN RESOURCES AND FINANCE (ACCOUNTING, PAYROLL, ACCOUNTS PAYABLE). THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE SERVICES ARE PAID FOR BY ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA; A RELATED INTERNAL REVENUE CODE SECTION 501(C)(3) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATION. ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA ALLOCATES A PORTION OF THE COSTS FOR THESE CORPORATE SERVICES TO VARIOUS NETWORK ENTITIES SUBJECT TO APPROVAL BY ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK. IN ADDITION, ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. SENIOR MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL REPORTED ON THIS FORM 990 ARE ISSUED FORMS W-2 FROM ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA. |
| CORE FORM, PART VI, SECTION B; QUESTION 11B |
THE ORGANIZATION IS AN AFFILIATE WITHIN ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK ("NETWORK"); A TAX-EXEMPT INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE DELIVERY NETWORK. ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. IS THE TAX-EXEMPT PARENT ENTITY OF THE NETWORK. THE ORGANIZATION'S FEDERAL FORM 990 WAS PROVIDED TO EACH VOTING MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZATION'S GOVERNING BODY (ITS BOARD OF TRUSTEES) PRIOR TO THE FILING WITH THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE ("IRS"). IN ADDITION, THE ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK FINANCE COMMITTEE WAS UPDATED AS TO THIS ORGANIZATION'S CURRENT YEAR FORM 990 PRIOR TO FILING. ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. BOARD OF TRUSTEES DELEGATED TO THE FINANCE COMMITTEE THE RESPONSIBILITY TO OVERSEE AND COORDINATE THE FEDERAL FORM 990 PREPARATION AND FILING PROCESS FOR THE TAX-EXEMPT AFFILIATES OF THE NETWORK. AS PART OF THE ORGANIZATION'S FEDERAL FORM 990 TAX RETURN PREPARATION PROCESS THE ORGANIZATION HIRED A PROFESSIONAL CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING ("CPA") FIRM WITH EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE IN BOTH HEALTHCARE AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT TAX RETURN PREPARATION TO PREPARE THE FEDERAL FORM 990. THE CPA FIRM'S TAX PROFESSIONALS WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE NETWORK'S FINANCE PERSONNEL AND VARIOUS OTHER NETWORK INDIVIDUALS ("INTERNAL WORKING GROUP") TO OBTAIN THE INFORMATION NEEDED IN ORDER TO PREPARE A COMPLETE AND ACCURATE TAX RETURN. THE CPA FIRM PREPARED A DRAFT FEDERAL FORM 990 AND FURNISHED IT TO THE NETWORK'S INTERNAL WORKING GROUP FOR THEIR REVIEW. THE NETWORK'S INTERNAL WORKING GROUP REVIEWED THE DRAFT FEDERAL FORM 990 AND DISCUSSED QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS WITH THE CPA FIRM. REVISIONS WERE MADE TO THE DRAFT FEDERAL FORM 990 WHERE NECESSARY AND A FINAL DRAFT WAS FURNISHED BY THE CPA FIRM TO THE NETWORK'S INTERNAL WORKING GROUP FOR FINAL REVIEW AND APPROVAL PRIOR TO PRESENTATION OF THE FEDERAL FORM 990 TO THE MEMBERS OF THE ST. LUKE'S HEALTH NETWORK, INC. FINANCE COMMITTEE. THEREAFTER, THE FINAL FEDERAL FORM 990 WAS PROVIDED TO EACH VOTING MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZATION'S GOVERNING BODY PRIOR TO FILING WITH THE IRS. |
| CORE FORM, PART VI, SECTION B; QUESTION 12 |
THE ORGANIZATION HAS A WRITTEN CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY AND REGULARLY MONITORS AND ENFORCES COMPLIANCE WITH THAT POLICY. THE POLICY REQUIRES THAT A CONFLICT OF INTEREST DISCLOSURE FORM CONSISTENT WITH BEST GOVERNANCE PRACTICES AND INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE GUIDELINES BE CIRCULATED TO OFFICERS, TRUSTEES, BOARD COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT ANNUALLY. THE NETWORK'S COMPLIANCE DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING ITS CORPORATE COMPLIANCE OFFICER AND SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT/GENERAL COUNSEL, ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE COMPLETION OF THE CONFLICT OF INTEREST QUESTIONNAIRES AND ENFORCEMENT WITH THE POLICY. IF A TRUSTEE DISCLOSES AN INTEREST THAT COULD GIVE RISE TO A CONFLICT, THE TRUSTEE'S POTENTIAL CONFLICT MAY BE DISCLOSED TO THE ORGANIZATION'S GOVERNING BODY, WHICH EVALUATES THE CONFLICT AND ITS POTENTIAL IMPACT ON THE TRUSTEE'S PARTICIPATION ON THE BOARD. AFTER CONSULTATION AND DISCUSSION THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES MAY TAKE ACTION, IF APPROPRIATE AND NECESSARY, TO ADDRESS ANY SUCH CONFLICT IN A MANNER CONSISTENT WITH THE NETWORK'S CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY. |
| CORE FORM, PART VI, SECTION B; QUESTION 15 |
COMPENSATION REVIEW EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION FOR THE HEALTH NETWORK CONSISTS OF FIXED SALARY, AT-RISK COMPENSATION AND OTHER DEFERRED COMPENSATION ARRANGEMENTS. TOTAL COMPENSATION FOR NETWORK EXECUTIVES IS APPROVED ANNUALLY BY THE NETWORK'S BOARD OF TRUSTEES. THE RECOMMENDED COMPENSATION IS ESTABLISHED THROUGH A MULTI-FACETED APPROACH INCLUDING USE OF AN INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT ENGAGED ON AN ONGOING BASIS BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES AND WHO WORKS DIRECTLY WITH THE EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD. ALSO INCLUDED IS THE REVIEW OF FORMS 990 AND COMPENSATION SURVEYS OF OTHER COMPARABLE HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATIONS. PLEASE REFER TO THE SCHEDULE J, PART III RESPONSE TO SCHEDULE J, PART I, QUESTION 3 FOR A MORE DETAILED DESCRIPTION. |
| CORE FORM, PART VI, SECTION C; QUESTION 19 |
ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK, OF WHICH THIS ENTITY IS THE PARENT, HAS ISSUED TAX-EXEMPT BONDS TO FINANCE VARIOUS CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, RENOVATIONS AND EQUIPMENT. IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE ISSUANCE OF THESE TAX-EXEMPT BONDS, THE ORGANIZATION'S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS WERE INCLUDED WITH THE TAX-EXEMPT BOND PROSPECTUS WHICH WAS MADE AVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC FOR REVIEW. IN ADDITION, THE ORGANIZATION'S FILED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION AND ANY AMENDMENTS CAN BE OBTAINED AND REVIEWED THROUGH THE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA. |
| CORE FORM, PART VII AND SCHEDULE J |
CORE FORM, PART VII AND SCHEDULE J REFLECT CERTAIN BOARD MEMBERS AND OFFICERS RECEIVING COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS FROM RELATED ORGANIZATIONS. PLEASE NOTE THIS REMUNERATION WAS FOR SERVICES RENDERED AS FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES OF THIS ORGANIZATION OR A RELATED ORGANIZATION AND NOT FOR SERVICES RENDERED AS A VOTING MEMBER OR OFFICER OF THIS ORGANIZATION'S BOARD OF TRUSTEES. |
| CORE FORM, PART VII AND SCHEDULE J |
FRANK FORD, A FORMER OFFICER OF THIS ORGANIZATION, IS STILL EMPLOYED WITHIN THE ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK. MR. FORD IS THE PRESIDENT OF SACRED HEART HOSPITAL OF ALLENTOWN; WHICH IS A DIVISION OF ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA; A RELATED INTERNAL REVENUE CODE SECTION 501(C)(3) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATION. |
| CORE FORM, PART VII, SECTION A, COLUMN B |
THE ORGANIZATION IS THE PARENT ENTITY OF THE ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK ("NETWORK"); A TAX-EXEMPT INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE DELIVERY NETWORK. CERTAIN BOARD OF TRUSTEE MEMBERS AND OFFICERS LISTED ON CORE FORM, PART VII AND SCHEDULE J OF THIS FORM 990 MAY HOLD SIMILAR POSITIONS WITH BOTH THIS ORGANIZATION AND OTHER AFFILIATES WITHIN THE NETWORK. THE HOURS SHOWN ON THIS FORM 990 FOR BOARD MEMBERS WHO RECEIVE NO COMPENSATION FOR SERVICES RENDERED IN A NON-BOARD CAPACITY, REPRESENTS THE ESTIMATED HOURS DEVOTED PER WEEK FOR THIS ORGANIZATION. TO THE EXTENT THESE INDIVIDUALS SERVE AS A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF OTHER RELATED ORGANIZATIONS IN THE NETWORK, THEIR RESPECTIVE HOURS PER WEEK PER ORGANIZATION ARE APPROXIMATELY THE SAME AS REFLECTED ON CORE FORM, PART VII OF THIS FORM 990. THE HOURS REFLECTED ON CORE FORM, PART VII OF THIS FORM 990, FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO RECEIVE COMPENSATION FOR SERVICES RENDERED IN A NON-BOARD CAPACITY, PAID OFFICERS AND KEY EMPLOYEES, REFLECT TOTAL HOURS WORKED PER WEEK ON BEHALF OF THE NETWORK; NOT SOLELY THIS ORGANIZATION. |
| CORE FORM, PART XI; LINE 9 |
OTHER CHANGES IN NET ASSETS OR FUND BALANCES INCLUDE: - CONTRIBUTIONS/DONATIONS RECEIVED - $6,893,297; - PLEDGES RECEIVED - ($11,387,743); - NEW PLEDGES - $14,998,801; - NET ASSETS RELEASED FROM RESTRICTIONS USED FOR PURCHASE OF PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - ($3,579,357); - NET ASSETS RELEASED FROM RESTRICTIONS USED FOR OPERATIONS - ($2,747,626); - ALLOWANCE FOR PLEDGES WRITTEN OFF AND ACTUAL WRITE-OFFS - ($312,874); - ENDOWMENT SPENDING POLICY TRANSFER TO TEMPORARILY RESTRICTED - ($778,046); - CONTRIBUTIONS/DONATIONS RECEIVED - $1,929,017; - INCOME FROM INVESTMENTS - $2,069,365; - NET REALIZED GAIN ON SALE FROM INVESTMENTS - $651,243; - INCOME RELEASED AND TRANSFERRED TO GENERAL FUND FOR OPERATIONS - ($41,108); - APPRECIATION TRANSFER TO/FROM ENDOWMENT - ($560,657); AND - OTHER CHANGES IN DONOR RESTRICTED NET ASSETS - ($684,379). |
| CORE FORM, PART XII; QUESTION 2 |
THE TAXPAYER IS THE PARENT ENTITY OF ST. LUKE'S UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK ("NETWORK"); A TAX-EXEMPT INTEGRATED HEALTHCARE DELIVERY NETWORK. AN INDEPENDENT CPA FIRM AUDITED THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF THE TAXPAYER AND ITS CONTROLLED AFFILIATES FOR THE YEARS ENDED JUNE 30, 2023 AND JUNE 30, 2022; RESPECTIVELY AND ISSUED A CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENT. AN UNMODIFIED OPINION WAS ISSUED EACH YEAR BY THE INDEPENDENT CPA FIRM. THE NETWORK'S FINANCE COMMITTEE ASSUMES RESPONSIBILITY FOR OVERSIGHT OF THE AUDIT OF THE NETWORK'S CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND THE SELECTION OF AN INDEPENDENT AUDITOR. |
Attach to Form 990 or Form 990-EZ. 
Attach to Form 990 or 990-EZ.