Carondelet Health Network

Carondelet Health Network is a large Catholic health care provider in Arizona, and is part of the Ascension Health Network. It is a non-profit corporation with five facilities: Carondelet St. Mary’s Hospital (the first hospital in Arizona), Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital, Carondelet Neurological Institute, Carondelet Heart & Vascular Institute, and Carondelet Holy Cross Hospital.^[1]

The Carondelet Model

Carondelet Health Network created a Community Nursing Organization (CNO) model, implemented in 1994, to determine if community-based health services could be efficiently managed by nurses.^[2] Key features of the Carondelet model included:

• Risk assessment of all members at enrollment and designated intervals
• Matching of nursing and clinical resources to member need and risk level
• Integration of primary secondary and tertiary prevention services
• Participation of members in development and selection of educational programs and clinical interventions
• Individual and group interventions
• Community-based service delivery

Carondelet’s CNO model included an analysis of the Southern Arizona health care market, in order to localize their nursing services.^[2]

Services Provided

Hospice and Palliative Care

Carondelet Hospice and Palliative Care seeks to attend to the "physical, spiritual, and psychological needs of people living with a life-limiting illness", ensure that the physical and psychological needs of family members are met, and educate the public on the end-of-life process. Each patient is serviced based on individual needs and desires and a unique plan is created in order to best care for them.^[3]

Hospice and Palliative Care Services listed on the Carondelet website are:

• Nursing visits
• Personal care
• Durable medical equipment and oxygen
• Medications and supplies
• Pain and symptom management
• Nutrition counseling
• Emotional support and counseling
• Spiritual support
• Bereavement follow-up
• Support groups
• Specialized therapies

Support and Expansion

In 2011, Carondelet hospice received a $4.5 million donation from the estate of Winifred Q. Witt, a Tucson resident who, alongside her husband Samuel Witt, was known for her philanthropy in Southern Arizona.^[4] Executive director of Carondelet Hospice and Palliative Care Lupe Trieste said "With this gift, Carondelet will be able to ensure enduring, quality programs of support and comfort." In 2002, all proceeds from the Nogales Debutante Cotillion were given directly to Carondelet Hospice.^[5] Cotillion Committee President Dora Dexter said that the committee chose Carondelet Hospice because "It’s a charitable cause that a lot of people overlook."

References