Sunday, Aug. 27 4:00 p.m. – All San Antonio and surrounding area operations will open for regular business hours tomorrow, Monday, August 28.

All appointments originally scheduled at Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic for Monday, Aug. 28 and Tuesday, Aug. 29 will be moved to Wesley Health & Wellness Center. For questions, please call Wesley Health & Wellness Center at (210) 922-6922.

Our thoughts and prayers are with all who have been impacted by the hurricane, especially patients/clients and team members whose families may have been injured or homes damaged during the storms.

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Friday, Aug. 25 2:00 p.m. – In preparation for heavy rains and possible flooding due to Hurricane Harvey, all of our San Antonio area locations (Wesley Health & Wellness Center; Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic; School Based Health Center at Krueger Elementary; School Based Health Center at Schertz Elementary and our corporate headquarters) will close at 3:00 p.m. Arrangements will be made to reschedule afternoon appointments.

All appointments originally scheduled at Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic for Monday, Aug. 28 and Tuesday, Aug. 29 will be moved to Wesley Health & Wellness Center. For questions, please call Wesley Health & Wellness Center at (210) 922-6922.

The safety of our patients, clients and team members is of utmost importance. Visit this webpage for the latest updates. Please take note of your local news station for the latest weather updates to ensure you and your family stay safe.

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Thursday, Aug. 24 7:00 p.m. – The safety of our patients, clients, and team members – throughout all of our 74-county service area – is important to us. As Hurricane Harvey makes its way to South Texas, it is likely that San Antonio will also experience severe weather and flooding.

In anticipation of inclement weather, all appointments originally scheduled at Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic for Friday, Aug. 25 will be moved to Wesley Health & Wellness Center. For questions, call (800) 959-6673.

Please take note of your local news station for the latest weather updates to ensure you and your family stay safe.

Originally posted by the Valley Morning Star.
By RAUL GARCIA, staff writer

SANTA ROSA — The district's Get Fit summer camp has kicked off.

The program teaches children the importance of health and fitness.

Santa Rosa High School seniors are employed as camp helpers.

"We are very excited about the program and it is beneficial to the whole community," said Rebecca Corpus, Santa Rosa High School principal.

The Get Fit program is a wellness program funded by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries.

This is the second consecutive year the district has rolled out this program, Corpus said.

The key components of the camp teach the students the importance of nutrition, physical development and character building through the arts.

Corpus said the program helps the high school students earn extra money during the summer, and helps them get ready for college.

She said 25 seniors were hired to work with the students enrolled in the summer program.

The seniors will assist the camp instructors in teaching exercise and nutritional techniques to the participating students.

Alberto Trevino, Santa Rosa Independent School District's After School Program project director, said the summer camp assistants are a big help to the staff, carrying out the daily camp activities.

The program will serve 150 students from grades first through eighth.

It is a 16-day camp held during the month of June, Monday through Thursday.

Every Thursday students will go on a field trip to an area museum, kayaking, bicycling, fishing, bowling, or to the movies.

Students will also use the local swimming pool on Wednesdays.

"They will learn many skills and leadership development they will need when they go to college or work," Trevino said. "They get the experience of actually working."

To view news article on the Valley Morning Star, click here.

Kevin C. Moriarty sets his course for departure

For 21 years, Kevin C. Moriarty has served as the president and chief executive officer of Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. But today, Moriarty announced his plans to retire marking the end of an extraordinary career of faithful service to South Texas. Moriarty will continue to serve as CEO until a successor is named and successfully on-boarded. The Methodist Healthcare Ministries' board of directors will engage an executive search firm to evaluate candidates for CEO.

"Kevin's service and commitment to the patients, clients and communities we serve across South Texas over these many years have been steadfast and he has been the fiercest of advocates for the least served, an innovator, and an exemplary model of servant leadership for the MHM team of talent he has led during his tenure," said George Ricks, the chair of the Methodist Healthcare Ministries board of directors. "I know I speak for everyone on the board of directors when I say that we at Methodist Healthcare Ministries deeply respect and admire Kevin for his passion, tenacity and bold leadership."

Kevin was selected to serve as Methodist Healthcare Ministries' first-ever chief executive officer in 1996, one year after a unique and unprecedented partnership was brokered between Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) and the former Methodist Hospital Board of Trustees which later founded the Methodist Healthcare Ministries organization and transformed the singular Methodist Hospital into the Methodist Healthcare System.

In his role as President and CEO, Moriarty is responsible for advancing the dual objectives of Methodist Healthcare Ministries' mission: To improve the health of the least served in The United Methodist Church's Rio Texas Conference area and oversight of the quality and charitable activities of the Methodist Healthcare System. Accordingly, Moriarty has been primarily responsible for the executive administration of the primary care medical and dental clinics owned and operated by Methodist Healthcare Ministries, sustaining the grants portfolio, and setting the research, advocacy and policy direction for the organization.

"As a father of five children, I have been driven to provide for all our communities the same levels of care that I would require for my family. Accepting this job 21 years ago has been one of the greatest adventures of my life," expressed Moriarty. "I arrived in San Antonio over 40 years ago as a very young man from New York with hope that I would find a career that was both meaningful to me and gave me an opportunity to make a positive difference in peoples' lives. I was lucky to do it first as a public official with the City of San Antonio for over 20 years, but incredibly blessed to do it again as CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries for over 21 years. To have done all this in the community where I have raised my family and proud to call home is something for which I am very grateful!"

Through the partnership with HCA, Moriarty grew Methodist Healthcare Ministries' strategies for community health from a budget of $3 million for 2,900 clients in 1996, to a budgeted expenditure of $105 million in 2017 through contracts with partners and operated programs impacting 300,000 patients per year in 2017.

The number of nonprofit partners funded by Methodist Healthcare Ministries has grown significantly under Moriarty's leadership; from four grant-funded programs through three nonprofit agencies in 1996 for a total of $1.3 million to more than 120 grant-funded programs to more than 90 partners in 2017 for a total of $26.7 million.

Methodist Healthcare Ministries has also played a pivotal role in the development of state policies under Moriarty's leadership that have helped countless low-income families and the uninsured across the state access care. Under his direction and through his advocacy, the organization played a pivotal role in the development of the Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) and the Texas Women's Health Program. In Bexar County, Moriarty led and supported local efforts to fluoridate the water supply in San Antonio, develop the Women Involved in Nurturing, Giving and Sharing Program—also known as WINGS, the Health Collaborative and Health Access San Antonio or HASA, and managed Methodist Healthcare Ministries' $7.1 million gift to fund construction of Haven for Hope's medical, dental, vision and intake facility in 2008. Outside of Bexar County, Moriarty was vital to the collaboration that established the only Federally Qualified Health Center in the Coastal Bend at the time and which remains a critical source of care for that region's uninsured population. He also created funding relationships through the FQHC network in San Antonio and throughout the 74 counties of the Rio Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church with 17 FQHC's.

"What has motivated me and fills my heart with joy was to try as best I could to live up to what John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, asked of all who follow in this faith tradition: That I did all the good I could do, in all the places I was able, and for as many people as I could," said Moriarty. "There is more to do, and I am confident this organization is prepared for what lies ahead, just as I am ready for the next adventure in my story to begin. This is the legacy I leave for the next generation of leadership at Methodist Healthcare Ministries."

Upon his retirement, Moriarty will remain actively engaged in the community. "I look forward to sharing my gifts and talents in new ventures and relationships, creating pathways forward, for San Antonio and Texas."

About Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. is a private, faith-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating access to health care for the uninsured through direct services, community partnerships and strategic grant-making in 74 counties across South Texas. The mission of the organization is "Serving Humanity to Honor God" by improving the physical, mental and spiritual health of those least served in the Rio Texas Conference area of The United Methodist Church. The mission also includes Methodist Healthcare Ministries' one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System, the largest healthcare system in South Texas, which creates a unique avenue to ensure that it continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all and charitable care when needed. For more information, visit www.mhm.org. 

Methodist Healthcare Ministries is pleased to congratulate its partner Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) for being recognized as a 2017 World's Most Ethical Company® by the Ethisphere Institute, a global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices.

HCA is one of only seven companies honored in the health care provider category this year. This marks the eighth consecutive year the award is granted to HCA – a leading health care provider with 171 hospitals and 118 freestanding surgery centers in 20 states and the United Kingdom. The award is designated for organizations that have had a material impact on the way business is conducted by fostering a culture of ethics and transparency at every level of the company.

Together, HCA and Methodist Healthcare Ministries equally own the Methodist Healthcare System, the largest faith-based health care provider in San Antonio and South Texas.

"Congratulations to our partner, HCA, for this prestigious recognition," said Kevin C. Moriarty, President/CEO for Methodist Healthcare Ministries. "This honor calls attention to HCA's continuous commitment to ethical business practices and the excellent care that is provided to our shared patients. Methodist Healthcare Ministries is proud to have a partner whose high ethical standards are aligned with our own principles and commitment to quality and excellence."

In 1955, the Rio Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church chartered the Southwest Texas Methodist Hospital; it opened in 1963. Its purpose was to deliver and promote improved health care as well as enhance access to health care, with concern to include those least served. From this charter and that first hospital, Methodist Healthcare System was formed in 1995 and today is the largest health care provider in San Antonio and 24 surrounding counties. Since 1995, in joint partnership with HCA, Methodist Healthcare Ministries has retained one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System and provides the local governance to ensure that the Methodist Healthcare System continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all and charitable care when needed.

To read the full release honoring HCA, click here. 

Campaign to support three Federally Qualified Health Centers in South Texas

San Antonio (April. 12, 2017) – Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. – a private, faith-based not-for-profit dedicated to creating access to health care for low-income families and the uninsured – announced its support of a new American Cancer Society campaign, "Cancer Prevention: It's worth a shot." Methodist Healthcare Ministries will donate $500,000 to the American Cancer Society for a comprehensive, two-year cancer prevention initiative focused on increasing human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations among medically underserved children in South Texas served by local and regional Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) and to support a community-based HPV vaccination education campaign for parents and families.

"Methodist Healthcare Ministries is proud to support the American Cancer Society's HPV prevention campaign," stated Kevin C. Moriarty, president & CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries. "At our clinics, we often see patients that are beyond the prevention stage of treatment. To be a part of such a pivotal campaign, a campaign using proven results, and knowing that through the campaign's partnerships low-income families will have access to the vaccine, is especially meaningful to us at Methodist Healthcare Ministries." As part of this effort, the American Cancer Society will partner with three Federally Qualified Health Centers (Amistad Community Health Center, Atascosa Health Center and CentroMed), all of which Methodist Healthcare Ministries has had a long-standing relationship.

The HPV vaccine has been proven safe and effective in the prevention of infection as well as cervical cancer and other HPV-related cancers. The HPV vaccination rate goal of Healthy People 2020 (a national health promotion and disease prevention initiative) aims for vaccine coverage for boys and girls ages 13-15 to be 80%, receiving at least three doses of the HPV vaccine. Per the 2015 National Immunization Survey, the vaccine rates in San Antonio for girls ages 13 to 17 was 32.8 percent, and 19.9 percent for boys ages 13 to 17. Although preventive care like vaccinations is covered by Medicaid and many private insurance plans, thousands of children, especially in clinics that serve those in greatest need, go without vaccinations that could protect them.

"We are honored to lead this effort with the valuable support of Methodist Healthcare Ministries," said Suncerria Tillis, senior director of primary care systems at the American Cancer Society. "The American Cancer Society has made HPV vaccinations a top mission priority. Vaccinating children gives health care providers and parents the powerful opportunity to prevent HPV-related cancers in the future. The FQHC's we work with will be instrumental in this effort as well."

Based on an assessment of current practice, the American Cancer Society will work with each FQHC to build a customized program that will include provider education, patient outreach, education, and follow-up, as well as other quality improvement efforts. Each FQHC partner will receive capacity building funding to support their comprehensive program. The project aims to employ approaches to increase provider recommendation and vaccination coverage levels that will be sustained beyond the funding period.

View a previously recorded live-stream of the news announcement on Facebook.com/mhmstx. Follow the conversation using #mhmstx and #2shots2preventCancer.

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About Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. is a private, faith-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating access to health care for the uninsured through direct services, community partnerships and strategic grant-making in 74 counties across South Texas. The mission of the organization is "Serving Humanity to Honor God" by improving the physical, mental and spiritual health of those least served in the Rio Texas Conference area of The United Methodist Church. The mission also includes Methodist Healthcare Ministries' one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System, the largest healthcare system in South Texas, which creates a unique avenue to ensure that it continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all and charitable care when needed. For more information, visit www.mhm.org. 

About American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is a global grassroots force of 2 million volunteers saving lives in every community. As the largest voluntary health organization, the Society's efforts have contributed to a 23 percent decline in cancer death rates in the U.S. since 1991, and a 50 percent drop in smoking rates. We're finding cures as the nation's largest private, not-for-profit investor in cancer research, ensuring people facing cancer have the help they need and continuing the fight for access to quality health care, lifesaving screenings and more. For more information, to get help or to join the fight, call us anytime, day or night, at (800) 227-2345 or visit www.cancer.org. 

Methodist Healthcare Ministries' will relocate its primary care clinic to the former home of Southeast Baptist Hospital.

San Antonio (Jan. 12, 2017) – For 20 years, the Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic, owned and operated by Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc., has served San Antonio's uninsured patients from the Eastside Medical Office Building on East Commerce Street. Methodist Healthcare Ministries is proud to announce it will relocate its Bishop Ernest T. Dixon, Jr. Clinic to a familiar address on the Southeast side of San Antonio. The property which once was home to Southeast Baptist Hospital was purchased Jan. 11 by Methodist Healthcare Ministries and will be the grounds for the expansion of its Dixon Clinic services when it relocates late 2017.

The Dixon Clinic is part of Methodist Healthcare Ministries' strategy for improving community health and is intended to stimulate additional investment in health care services on the Eastside. "We opened the Dixon Clinic with the vision that it would become a resource for uninsured and low-income families who had no other access to primary care or social services. Our goal then was to draw additional resources to what had been a dramatically underserved area. Today, in addition to operating the Dixon Clinic we continue to fund the Eastside through partners such as CommuniCare and CentroMed," explained Kevin C. Moriarty, president and CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries.

In March 2015, Methodist Healthcare Ministries commissioned Capital Healthcare Planning, an independent consulting firm, to identify and determine high-level needs of at-risk populations across the greater San Antonio area (read report: Bexar County Uninsured Market Assessment: Primary Care). The objective was to understand the current provision of care to at-risk populations within Bexar County; identify major gaps in care that might suggest opportunity for Methodist Healthcare Ministries to provide additional resources; and to work with community leaders, partners and stakeholders to develop consensus around a model and plan for service delivery to address those gaps in care. "The data showed an emerging unmet need. It affirmed we still have work to do on the Southeast side and the Dixon Clinic was the answer just as it was 20 years ago," said Moriarty.

Southeast Baptist Hospital closed its doors in 2011. The current property grounds have two medical office buildings, as well as the once Southeast Baptist Hospital building, all of which sits on 20 acres of land. Dixon Clinic operations will relocate to one of the medical office buildings while the other is currently occupied by a group of private physicians. The hospital building will be demolished as additional plans for the site develop.

"We are thrilled to make this announcement as we celebrate the Dixon Clinic's 20th anniversary," said Moriarty. "Bishop Dixon, for whom the clinic is named after and who served in The United Methodist Church for many years, would have been so proud that a service that provides care to a community he loved, and which we have been honored to be a part of, will continue to serve so many."

For the latest updates on the Dixon Clinic relocation, please visit http://www.mhm.org/clinics/bishop-ernest-t-dixon-jr-clinic. 

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About Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. is a private, faith-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating access to health care for the uninsured through direct services, community partnerships and strategic grant-making in 74 counties across South Texas. The mission of the organization is "Serving Humanity to Honor God" by improving the physical, mental and spiritual health of those least served in the Rio Texas Conference area of The United Methodist Church. The mission also includes Methodist Healthcare Ministries' one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System, the largest healthcare system in South Texas, which creates a unique avenue to ensure that it continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all and charitable care when needed. For more information, visit www.mhm.org. 

For the fourth, consecutive year, Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. partnered with Methodist Hospital and Methodist Children's Hospital to donate nearly 50 decorated, artificial Christmas trees to several underserved families in San Antonio.

"We are delighted to be able to provide our clients with some holiday cheer this season. Christmas is a time of compassion and giving, and that's what these trees symbolize. We are grateful for the generosity of Methodist Hospital and Methodist Children's Hospital, and the joy this donation will bring many families," expressed Oanh Maroney-Omitade, vice president of clinical operations at Methodist Healthcare Ministries.

As part of their holiday celebrations, several departments of Methodist Hospital and Methodist Children's Hospital participated in an annual Christmas tree decorating contest. Trees adorned with unique ornaments, some hand-crafted by employees, were put on display at both hospitals, transforming the facilities into winter wonderlands. Select trees also contained presents for an extra holiday surprise. The trees were then delivered to Wesley Health & Wellness Center where they were distributed to approximately 50 families who participate in Methodist Healthcare Ministries' programs and services.

"Getting a Christmas tree means a lot to me and to my children," said a Christmas tree recipient. "There wasn't going to be a Christmas tree at our home, but thanks to Methodist Healthcare Ministries, we had a happier Christmas. We were very surprised and grateful. It was truly a blessing."