LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Saint Joseph's Hospital Health Center
upon its 140th Anniversary

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to acknowledge and
honor those occasions when a community asset within our midst celebrates
an important anniversary or milestone; and
WHEREAS, One such occasion is the 140th Anniversary of Saint Joseph's
Hospital Health Center located in Syracuse, New York; and
WHEREAS, Saint Joseph's Hospital Health Center is a 431-bed comprehen-
sive medical care institution dedicated to providing quality health care
to the residents of 16 counties in Central New York; and
WHEREAS, St. Joseph's can trace its roots back to its humble beginning
in 1869 when five Sisters of St. Francis -- Sisters Mary Dominica
Cummings, Mary Mechtilidies Goggin, Mary Veronica Gosse, Mary Johanna
Kaiser and Mary Hyacintha Eagan -- transformed a dance hall and saloon
into the city's first hospital; and
WHEREAS, The 15-bed hospital opened its doors on May 6, 1869; still
sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis, the institution has evolved
into a health care system that, in addition to the Hospital, includes a
college of nursing, psychiatric emergency program and two outpatient
surgery centers; and
WHEREAS, In addition to providing general medial surgical care, St.
Joseph's offers several specialty services, including hemodialysis,
maternity services, a separate birth center, emergency care, intensive
care, dental services, suicide prevention, wound care and certified home
health care; and
WHEREAS, St. Joseph's also operates several satellite facilities,
including family and maternal care centers, a dental office, psychiatric
services center, The Wellness Place, Regional Dialysis Center, neighbor-
hood dialysis centers, the Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medi-
cine, and a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation center; and
WHEREAS, St. Joseph's inpatient admissions average more than 22,500
annually; outpatient visits throughout the St. Joseph's network number
more than 517,000 a year and the Hospital's emergency department records
more than 50,000 visits a year; and
WHEREAS, The Hospital's medical staff of more than 800 is comprised of
physicians, dentists and midwives representing a broad spectrum of
specialties; more than 200 clinical affiliates, including physician
assistants and nurse practitioners, are credentialed to assist the
medical staff; more than 3,000 other health care professionals and
support personnel are employed, and more than 1,100 devoted volunteers
and members of the Hospital's Auxiliary help support patient care
programs; and
WHEREAS, Year after year, Saint Joseph's continues to thrive and
provide the community with outstanding health care; in 2008 St. Joseph's
again earned many accolades for its clinical and service excellence,
including the Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence from the Ameri-
can Association of Critical Care Nurses, the Consumer Choice No. 1 Award
from the National Research Corp. for highest overall quality and image
in the Syracuse area, and several high marks for cardiac, vascular and
orthopedic excellence from HealthGrades; and
WHEREAS, Also in 2008, St. Joseph's implemented a "noise reduction"
initiative throughout the hospital and achieved a 10 percent increase in
patient satisfaction with regard to noise; for the third consecutive
year, St. Joseph's Home Care was nationally recognized as an "Elite Home
Care Agency" and one of the top 500 agencies in the nation; St.
Joseph's was the first hospital in the United States to successfully

complete the MORE program improving the quality of obstetrical services;
and
WHEREAS, St. Joseph's has a strong record of patient satisfaction; in
2008 the Department of Health and Human Services' Hospital Consumer
Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey showed
that St. Joseph's overall average patient satisfaction score is higher
than any Syracuse hospital and higher than the New York State average;
and
WHEREAS, Each day, St. Joseph's strives to provide a higher level of
care, and carry on its mission -- "We, the St. Joseph's Hospital Health
Center family, inspired by the spirit of St. Francis, welcome with
compassion and reverence all people. We dedicate ourselves to excellence
as we care for the physical, emotional, social and spiritual needs of
those we serve and with whom we work. We strive to be people of vision,
responding with enthusiasm and integrity to the needs of all in an ever-
changing health care environment. With an ongoing commitment to careful
stewardship, we accept our sacred mission"; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor and pay tribute to Saint Joseph's Hospital Health Center upon the
occasion of its 140th Anniversary; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Theodore M. Pasinski, President of Saint Joseph's Hospital
Health Center.