Ministry Health Care, part of Ascension Wisconsin, has announced a number of key strategies to reinforce its commitment to more effectively meet the needs of those who rely on the health ministry for care.
"For the past 125 years, our mission to meet the healthcare needs of the communities we serve has remained constant," said Daniel Neufelder, President and CEO of Ministry Health Care. "Ministry is a strong and well-diversified healthcare system delivering person-centered care with 15 hospitals, 46 clinic locations, a more than 153,000-member health plan, 700 employed clinicians and over 11,000 associates. Along with Columbia St. Mary's in southeastern Wisconsin, as part of Ascension we have access to a multitude of resources to draw upon to continue our efforts to deliver high-quality, cost-effective patient care in a high-reliability environment."
Ministry's key strategies include:
- Ministry Saint Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield will launch an initiative to renovate and modernize the hospital to create an all-private-room care environment that is sized and scoped to meet the needs of the community.
- The organization has committed to significant investment in the growth of its Medical Group in communities throughout Wisconsin to expand its footprint in both primary and specialty care by pursuing an employed and partnered model and alignment with independent groups. This expansion will enable Ministry to improve access for patients in more community-based settings at lower cost.
- Ministry will implement the next generation of the Patient Centered Medical Home, which will provide improved convenience and access, enhanced telemedicine capabilities, and lower cost for patients, and for clinicians Ministry will provide a vibrant, growing environment with a reduced burden of non-clinical work, improved practice support, and robust physician influence and voice regarding the future of the medical group.
- As part of Ministry's commitment to provide high-quality, affordable, person-centered care close to home, the organization will offer more services in areas of its region along the I-39 corridor. This will bring new ambulatory care and hospital services to the Weston/Wausau market to not only grow the size of Ministry Saint Clare's Hospital but also increase the depth of the specialty services offered.
- Ministry's growth plan also will include the expansion of services in Stevens Point, Woodruff/Minocqua and Rhinelander. For example, at Ministry Saint Michael's Hospital the organization is under way with a patient-focused expansion of the emergency department and ambulatory surgery center, and soon will start work on expansion of the Stevens Point Cancer Center on the hospital campus.
- Finally, the organization is a proud member – along with Columbia St. Mary's, another part of Ascension Wisconsin – of Integrated Health Network of Wisconsin (IHN). In IHN Ascension Wisconsin is joined by high-quality partners at Froedtert Health, Medical College of Wisconsin, SSM Health Care of Wisconsin, Hospital Sisters Health System, Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, and Agnesian Health System. Ministry is well prepared to excel in the system of the future and looks forward to working with its IHN partners to lower the cost and enhance the quality of the care in Wisconsin communities.
With these initiatives in place, Ministry is committed to the Ascension Mission and the delivery of care with a goal to achieve Ascension's "Quadruple Aim":
- Improved health outcomes for the individual and the community
- Enhanced person-centered experiences for individuals
- Enhanced clinician experience for those providing care
- Lower overall cost of care
"The entire healthcare industry recognizes the need for continuous change and improvement," Neufelder said. "We must continue to lower costs, increase the consistency with which we deliver high-quality services, and improve access to care. We believe these actions will propel us well into the future to enable us to meet the evolving needs of the communities and patients we serve. The result will be a system of integrated services that delivers on the Quadruple Aim and our Mission to further the healing ministry of Jesus by continually improving the health and well-being of all people, especially the poor, in the communities we serve."
