MercyCare officially handed over ownership of Mercy Hospital Mount Lawley to St John of God Health Care (SJGHC) on May 5, in a strategic move to strengthen Catholic Health Care in WA.
The intention to transfer Mercy Hospital to SJGHC was announced in November 2013 pending the necessary approvals from the Catholic Church and other regulatory bodies.
All approvals were secured, thus enabling the finalisation of the sale.
With the transfer of ownership now official, the hospital will be known as St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital.
MercyCare chief executive officer Chris Hall said the transfer of ownership was an important decision in the history of Mercy Hospital, and will ensure a certain future for the hospital, its staff and the community it has cared for since 1937.
“This wasn’t a decision we took lightly,” he said.
“As the last stand-alone Mercy Hospital in Australia, it was important to us that the mission, vision and values we have held for so long at the hospital be maintained in its future.
“The obvious choice to take the hospital on the next stage of its journey was to align with SJGHC which shares our Catholic ethos.
“Our heritage on the hospital site goes back more than 75 years, when the Sisters of Mercy first opened St Anne’s in 1937. We have worked closely with SJGHC to ensure that fitting memorials and plaques are left at the site to recognise the dedication and commitment of not only our legacy with Mercy Hospital, but also the work and the service of those that came before us, especially the Sisters of Mercy.”
The official handover ceremony will take place at the hospital on June 6 and will be presided over by Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB.
SJGHC Group chief executive officer Michael Stanford said planning for the integration was well advanced.
“We have been working closely with MercyCare since they accepted our offer to ensure a smooth and speedy transition once the purchase was approved and feedback from doctors, external community partners and Mercy Mt Lawley Hospital staff has been very positive,” he said.
The transfer of ownership of Mercy Hospital sees MercyCare move away from acute health provision and allows the not-for-profit organisation the opportunity to provide a wider range of health care, social and community services for people who are without adequate assistance or who are marginalised from mainstream programs.
“MercyCare will not be departing health care altogether; we are simply moving our focus from acute health care to more community health care, and indeed to areas of emerging need such as mental health,” Mr Hall said.