Provena Mercy to join in state’s largest Catholic health system

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au02_mercy2 Provena Mercy Medical Center in Aurora. Mary Beth Nolan/For the Beacon News

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Updated: July 7, 2011 2:35PM

The Provena Health system — which includes Provena Mercy Medical Center in Aurora — and Resurrection Health Care have struck a deal to merge, creating the largest Catholic health care system in the state.

The new system will encompass 12 hospitals, 28 long-term care and senior residential facilities, more than 50 primary and specialty care clinics and six home health agencies. It also will have nearly $3 billion in operating revenue, nearly 5,000 physicians and more than 22,000 employees.

Innovation and growth

“The more we talked, the more we realized that through collaboration and equal partnership, we take a major step toward achieving a long common goal of ... a vibrant Catholic health system which will enhance our abilities to meet the needs of the communities we are privileged to serve,” Provena Health President and Chief Executive Officer Guy R. Wiebking said in a statement Tuesday.

The two health systems announced in February their plans to explore a merger.

“Our model supports innovation and growth under health reform,” said Sandra Bruce, president and CEO of Resurrection Health Care.

“In an industry so focused on episodic care, we look to be transformative in our mission by promoting healthy communities and identifying community needs to keep people healthy, as well as caring for the sick.”

Service around state

A combined Provena Health and Resurrection Health Care would represent one of the state’s largest health systems, with locations throughout Chicago, as well as Aurora, Elgin, Joliet, Kankakee, Des Plaines, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, Danville and Avilla, Ind.

The merger is subject to state regulatory approval.

Provena Mercy Medical Center in Aurora, Provena St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin and Provena St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Joliet are among the hospitals in the Provena Health system, which is based in Mokena.

Chicago-based Resurrection’s hospitals include Resurrection Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital, both in Chicago.

In addition, the system includes Resurrection University, a fully-accredited, not-for-profit, Catholic-based specialty school for health sciences.

Provena Mercy’s 100th

In June, Provena Mercy Medical Center employees celebrated 100 years of providing healing and health in the Fox Valley.

In 1911, the Sisters of Mercy opened up a hospital in a small Aurora apartment building. The following year, a farm just north of the city was purchased to house mental health patients — and from there, the services of the Sisters of Mercy continued to grow.

In 1931, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital was built on Lake Street; in 1971, Mercy Center for Health Care Services was completed on Highland Avenue; in 1985, McAuley Manor was established; in 1992, Fox Knoll retirement community opened.

Today, Provena Mercy Medical Center is a 356-bed hospital with more than 1,300 employees and a medical staff of more than 430 physicians.

And when the merger is complete, the Aurora hospital will be part of the state’s largest Catholic health provider team.