Resurrection and Provena hospitals agree to merge

Newly announced agreement to merge Resurrection Health Care and Provena Health creates the largest Catholic health care network in Illinois. "We in the Resurrection system are in the city while Provena has facilities outside the city," explained Margaret McDermott, Executive Vice President/CEO of Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center, 2233 W. Division.

This merger fits in with Resurrection's President/CEO Sandra Bruce's quest to retain Catholic health in a major system, according to McDermott. With major cities including New York with out a major Catholic health system, this would appear to be an ever increasing challenge as the count of nuns rapidly decreasing. (Health and education services in the catholic communities have been run and operated by nuns for over a century here in our community.)

The Resurrection, based in Chicago, and Provena, based in Mokena, merger will include twelve hospitals, more than fifty clinics, twenty-eight long term care facilities and six home health agencies.

According to Crain's Chicago Business, "The combined operation will have nearly 5,000 doctors and more than 22,000 employees, with revenue of nearly $3 billion."