Adventist HealthCare Limited

Mission Initiatives and

Activities

2019

MISSION INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES 20192

Identity and Objectives

Aligning with our Church’s

Adventist HealthCare Limited (AHCL) originated with the opening of the ‘Sydney Sanitarium’ in 1903. AHCL is a not-for-profit institution of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with its Mission to serve the community with a distinctive health and healing ministry founded on faith in God and the bringing of relief and hope through the co-operation of human effort and divine power.

AHCL operates a range of healthcare facilities including Sydney Adventist Hospital, San Day Surgery Hornsby, San Radiology & Nuclear Medicine, and Sydney Adventist Hospital Pharmacy. The organisation’s mission of ‘Christianity in Action – caring for the body, mind and spirit of our patients, colleagues, community and ourselves’; and its values of Dignity, Excellence, Integrity, and Continuity, is consistent with the Christian values and teachings of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

AHCL supports the Mission of the Church through a growing healthcare ministry to thousands of community members in need every day, creating opportunities to introduce people to the grace and love of God through the various healthcare services

provided. Through their experience with AHCL, customers are exposed to Adventist ethos and philosophy – including our focus on wholistic care and healthy living. AHCL also actively supports the Church in the training of nursing, medical and allied health personnel so that they are enabled to heal and teach others in the future.

This year the AHCL Board, Executive and Leadership teams have worked collaboratively to build a new strategic framework to take the organisation into the future. Our Vision is to be a thriving faith-based provider of world class care, inspiring hope and wellbeing. This new Vision – in harmony with our Mission – will help us to continue to grow our health ministry for decades to come.

OUR MISSION – Christianity in ActionOUR VISION – To be a thriving faith-based provider of world class care, inspiring hope and wellbeing

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MISSION INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES 20194

• AHCL cares for over 190,000 patients each year (inpatients and outpatients), and has the opportunity to influence thousands of individuals who interact with AHCL services every year including staff, doctors, volunteers, visitors, contractors, and other community members

• Spiritual Care Services – chaplains support our patients and staff with spiritual and emotional needs at every opportunity, and are focused on significantly increasing the patient visitation program capacity

• Worship & Prayer – weekday worship / prayer services, prayer and Bible study groups, and special services are held throughout the year

• Daily opportunities for prayer are provided in meetings, gatherings, celebrations and with individuals

• Prayer request cards and boxes are placed around Sydney Adventist Hospital (SAH) for patients, family, visitors, staff and community

• SAH website promotes our Mission and provides a wealth of health information for the community

• Flat screens in main foyer areas showcase hospital history, service & patient care with Mission related images

• Biannual San News publication with a Mission focus

• Media – Hope Channel and 3ABN are freely available to patients via the SAH TV network (San TV). Two dedicated in-house TV channels provide the ability to promote healthy living and Adventist beliefs to patients. All services in the chapel are available to patients and staff through San TV, including the 8:15 Morning Worship

• Brochures such as ‘Adventist Christianity in Action’, and ‘Sabbath’ – provide opportunity to introduce staff, patients, doctors & visitors to our Adventist beliefs

• Bibles are placed in every patient room, and Adventist Christian literature is available throughout our facilities

• New bereavement packs have been introduced to support families experiencing loss

Mission integration throughout the organisation is something we are incredibly passionate about – bringing our mission to life every day, through all activities and interactions with the communities we serve is an integral part of our reason for being.

• The ‘First Friday’ event is held each month, with a regular Friday evening vespers program in the chapel every other Friday evening and broadcast to patients via in-house San TV

• Monthly ‘Sabbath Praise’ musical program is held in the Hospital Chapel and is available to patients via San TV

• Regular interviews on Radio 2GB and Mums at the Table with talented AHCL staff and doctors sharing information about health and wellbeing

• Integration of Mission into recorded productions for website, intranet, in-house TV and podcasts

• Promotion of vegetarianism and healthy foods through San Café, San Snax and patient menus

• Incorporation of “Christianity in Action” into hospital advertisements and promotions

• Proactive promotion of Mission related AHCL news stories to the media

• Integration of Mission into master planning and facility design

• ‘Mission Minutes’ videos – 60-second inspirational staff member videos focusing on how they see or deliver Mission, made available to staff and community via pulse and the website

MISSION IN OUR DAILY SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES

Promoting Mission in Our Community 5

AHCL is proud of our people who enthusiastically and consistently bring our mission to life through serving the community – locally, nationally, and in overseas developing countries.

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through our volunteers

AHCL has 500 dedicated community members who volunteer their time regularly to support AHCL in caring for the community, including several individuals who are members of AHCL committees and the AHCL Consumer Advisory Council. Many of these volunteers have experienced care at AHCL, and wish to give back to the community through volunteering their time at AHCL. This year the San Volunteer team has been realigned under the Director, Mission Integration.

Mission in Our Community

Promoting

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through wellness and support services

Free information, resources, support groups and assistance is provided to patients and their carers within the community. The cancer support service is sustained by a large team of volunteers from our community. Low cost accommodation is also available onsite at SAH for patients and their carers.

A renewed focus on wellness services is part of our strategy and a range of wellness services aimed at helping people stay healthy are already available and promoted across our key service areas – eg cardiac rehabilitation, pre and post natal exercise, post cancer surgery exercise and through our lifestyle medicine research partner, Australasian Research Institute.

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through community fundraising

San Foundation is actively involved with local community groups, businesses and individuals in raising much needed funds for AHCL, helping to maintain its reputation for excellence, raising awareness of AHCL’s services, and fulfilling its Mission of caring for the community through financially supporting services and activities.

MISSION INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES 20196

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through outreach

Outreach activities provide excellent opportunities for our staff and doctors to extend our Mission to the community: • Open Heart International – humanitarian aid

program initiated by SAH (now partnering with ADRA) continues to transform lives in overseas countries, with many AHCL staff and doctors volunteering their time and skills

• SAH continues to provide work opportunities for disabled individuals – helping them to transition into community work

• Active involvement in local fundraising projects and activities for the community such as the ‘The Dish’ (meals and support to the local homeless and disadvantaged), Novus Foundation, Rotary, ‘Bobbin Head Cycle Classic’ bike ride, ‘Steptember’, 10,000 Toes, Hornsby Women’s refuge and others

• Regular speaking appointments of AHCL staff in local churches and community groups

• Many of our programs in the Chapel are advertised through local community by word of mouth and by letterboxing

• Introduction this year of a new staff award initiative – ‘Heart of the San’ – where staff can join an Open Heart International Mission trip

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through education

AHCL provides ongoing health education to our community through a number of initiatives including: • Regular birthing and parenting (including

grand-parenting) classes – improving life skills of new mums and their families

• Health education sessions provided free to the community

• Formal accredited medical education provided free to general practitioners in the community as well as education for allied health practitioners

• ACHL staff, doctors and patients sharing health information on Mums at the Table and through a radio sponsorship on 2GB

• Education facilities on site at SAH (including the SAH Clinical School of the University of Sydney, Avondale College of Higher Education, and San College of Education) – teaching healing to future health carers by providing formal education courses for medical, nursing and allied health professionals at AHCL and in the community. Courses / seminars for the community include CPR, First Aid and Anaphylaxis training, healthcare seminars, refresher & re-entry for nursing, new graduate programs

• Delivery of formal and accredited Clinical Pastoral Education with the first class graduating in 2019

CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION through community events

Several regular community events are conducted each year to support our community and promote health & wellness: • ‘San Run for Life’ fun run – a yearly event

promoting healthy lifestyles, spiritual reflection amid nature and raising funds for hospital projects

• Annual Memorial Service – bringing community members together to remember those who received care and support at SAH

• Carols by Candlelight – attracting several thousand community members to the front lawn of SAH each year to celebrate Christmas and the birth of Christ

• San Teddy Bears’ Picnic – hundreds of new parents and grandparents from our local community bringing their ‘San babies’ back to the hospital to enjoy a picnic and reunite with staff and doctors

• Launch of the new paperback book ‘Take me to the San – stories from a hospital with a Mission’

7Promoting Mission in Our Community

MISSION INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES 20198

• Inclusion of Mission as a standard agenda item for meetings

• Inclusion of prayer as a standard agenda item for formal AHCL meetings

• Inclusion of “Christianity in Action” on Job advertisements

• Inclusion of Mission in recruitment and interviews for new employees

• Inclusion of Mission in the AHCL orientation program

• Mission and culture on-boarding for all people appointed to leadership roles with the Director of Mission Integration

• Inclusion of “Christianity in Action” on staff business cards

• Inclusion of Mission goals in Corporate Strategy, Leader Goals and Performance Appraisals

• The ongoing Mission Ambassador Program, which provides encouragement and a structure for peer initiated mission enculturation in Hospital departments and recognition for staff who are examples of Mission in a number of ways, including information on Pulse (the staff intranet), and special awards at the annual AHCL Quality Awards event

• The Spiritual Ambassadors program – AHCL employees who are passionate in their support of Mission with a particular focus on offering, promoting and providing spiritually oriented care in their workplace

• Monday Mission Message distributed weekly to leadership and staff

• A different message placed on the Intranet each Friday inviting staff to celebrate Sabbath

Our People through Mission and Culture

Initiatives

Inspiring

The passion and dedication to our Mission is what drives our staff, doctors and volunteers to pursue excellence in caring for our community. Mission focused activities for our people

9Inspiring Our People through Mission and Culture Initiatives

• Spiritual Care Week where Chaplains see all AHCL teams and share messages of caring to unify staff under our Mission

• Inclusion of a Mission segment at each Leadership Forum

• Discussion of Mission examples in ‘San Chat’ videos by CEO Brett Goods shared with staff on the Intranet

• ‘Mission Minutes’ videos featuring inspirational staff members sharing how they see or deliver Mission

• Annual Hospital Focus Week with Mission related presentations and activities to inspire our leaders with new ways of integrating Mission into their areas

• Annual Staff Week with Mission related activities and other staff celebrations

• Chaplains Symposium – a three day symposium bringing together chaplains from various denominations around Australia and New Zealand working in health care, aged care and corrective services for professional development and inspiration

• Leadership development initiatives

• ‘More Care’ program focused on enhancing patient experience and extending Mission

• Employee workplace giving opportunities and projects

• Caring for the wellbeing of our staff and volunteers through work / life policies, flexible work practices, recognition of diversity, celebrations, and provision of recreation facilities on site

• Negotiating fair and equitable employment agreements

• Employee support program (for employees and volunteers)

• Staff Bereavement Pack provided to employees on death of a family member

• Fitness Passport program for staff

• Inclusion of Mission survey questions into the regular staff survey

• ‘Caring for our Colleagues’ planned giving fund to enable staff to provide support for their colleagues in times of crisis

MISSION INTEGRATION PLAN

Our Mission Integration Plan provides direction and focus for AHCL activities

• Unifying Purpose All entities, business units, and key stakeholders are Mission-unified and Mission-driven

• Influence Creating mission awareness, useful resources and practical intentionality

• Wholeness We care by focusing on body, mind and spirit, and creating optimum healing environments

• Experience AHCL provides excellent, spiritually nurturing experiences for staff, patients, carers, visitors, and the wider community

The Mission Integration Plan has provided direction and focus for activities that are integrated into daily practice by the leadership team and staff – across

Now & for the Future

Integrating Mission

MISSION INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES 201910

the hospital and throughout our community – to enhance our ongoing focus on delivering Mission. A great deal of progress has been made in all areas of the plan and evolution and development of new initiatives and activities will continue in the coming year to support this plan.

SUPPORTING ADVENTIST MISSION INTO THE FUTURE

Living our Mission of ‘Christianity in Action’ through all that we do, and maintaining our focus on providing outstanding services and wholistic care is the commonly held goal among our thousands of staff, volunteers and doctors.

Adventist HealthCare is committed to delivering the Adventist Mission and demonstrating Christ’s healing message by promoting healthy living, providing healing treatments, educating healthcare professionals for the future and touching people’s lives through our services and people.

11Integrating Mission Now & for the Future

Adventist HealthCare 185 Fox Valley Road, Wahroonga NSW 2076 Telephone: 02 9487 9111 www.adventisthealthcare.org.au

ABN 76 096 452 925

1213

MPR

0619