Medical care has undergone significant innovations since the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and Dr. Arthur E. Spohn opened the original Spohn Sanitarium on July 26, 1905, on North Beach.
Courtney Rangel (from left), Karen Bonner, Linda K. Jordan, Ticia Hanisch, Veronica Wenzel and Linda Arnold.
However, the one steadfast constant during the past century has been CHRISTUS Spohn Health System’s commitment to its mission of extending the healing ministry of Jesus Christ.
One group that’s committed to helping show that commitment to the Coastal Bend is the CHRISTUS Spohn Ambassadors. The group, founded in February 2009, is a women’s group that gathers to learn about CHRISTUS Spohn programs and services, and health care issues affecting our South Texas community. The Ambassadors work in tandem with the CHRISTUS Spohn Foundation to help foster communication and understanding of all facets of health care provided by CHRISTUS Spohn. They serve as community advocates for the Health System, helping to answer questions and provide accurate information about the innovation and outreach occurring within CHRISTUS Spohn.
“Our goal is to provide education and awareness to our Ambassadors so they can spread the good word about the services and programs CHRISTUS Spohn Health System offers to help the community live healthy lives,” says Leslie McClanahan, Vice Chair of the CHRISTUS Spohn Foundation Board of Directors and past Co-Chair of the Ambassadors Program. “We are committed to Corpus Christi and the people who live here, and want them to have access to the best health care possible.”
Carol McLaughlin (from left), Leslie McClanahan and Nancy Beauchamp, former co-chairs of the CHRISTUS Spohn Ambassadors.
The Corpus Christi group that started with 22 charter members now has 80 and Corpus Christi luncheon meetings are held three times a year during the fall, winter and spring. Meetings are hosted by a CHRISTUS Spohn Foundation Board Member or by one of the Ambassadors, and at each gathering a presentation is given by a CHRISTUS Spohn physician, medical clinician or hospital administrator.
“Not being from Corpus Christi originally, my involvement with this program has helped me realize how fortunate we are to have a hospital system like this in South Texas,” says Courtney Rangel, current Co-Chair of the Corpus Christi Ambassadors. “The CHRISTUS Spohn staff are so much fun and the friends I’ve made through this program make residing here pure joy!”
This April, the Ambassadors welcomed Dr. Lynn Rice Crocker, who discussed the role of hospitalists and their relationship with patients and patients’ admitting physicians. Rice Crocker, DO, Chief Hospitalist, Sound Physicians, is a dedicated in-patient physician who works exclusively for CHRISTUS Spohn hospitals.
For more information on the Ambassadors program, please contact Linda Arnold, Director of Development for the CHRISTUS Spohn Foundation, at 361-881-3940, or email linda.arnold@christushealth.org.
Posted on May 25, 2016