Mercy PRN Receives 2009 Achievement Citation Award

 

June 7, 2009, Catholic Health World  ~  The Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA) announced today that Mercy Perinatal Recovery Network, a program sponsored by Mercy San Juan Medical Center, Sacramento, CA, has been honored with the association's 2009 Achievement Citation Award. The award was presented at CHA's 2009 Catholic Health Assembly in New Orleans. The Achievement Citation, CHA's most prestigious award, was established in 1975 to honor bold and innovative initiatives from Catholic health care providers in service to their communities. Mercy Perinatal Recovery Network (PRN) is an outpatient drug and alcohol treatment program that takes a holistic approach to sobriety. Abstinence isn't enough, said Kathleen Montgomery, manager of Mercy Women's Center, which houses the program. The women need to develop a new life.

 

Women accepted into the program go through three stages of treatment for the first three months, they work on getting sober and starting to recover from the addiction; for the next three months, they receive continuing care; and for the final three months, they learn how to sustain a sober life. The program's service mix includes individual, group and domestic violence counseling; anger management work; art therapy and creative writing sessions; yoga; parenting education; legal help; nutrition training and smoking cessation. Women can get help with transportation costs and are provided free meals. The program provides child care for children aged five and under.

 

Mercy PRN began in July 1997 when Mercy San Juan Medical Center provided start-up costs. Since its inception, the program has grown to serve annually approximately 150 or so drug- or alcohol-addicted mothers and mothers-to-be and 50 children. Mercy PRN reports a success rate far superior to that of similar programs. In 2007, 73 percent of Mercy PRN's patients completed the first 90 days of treatment, compared to the national average of 30 percent. Sixty percent completed 180 days of treatment, compared to a national average of 38 percent.

 

Administrator Montgomery said child care staff nurture the children and help them learn. They also help them deal with their emotional challenges. And as clients progress through recovery, Mercy PRN helps them prepare for life after graduation. The program offers literacy courses and job skills primers, for instance.

 

Montgomery added that the program is a ministry to help these women, whom society has deemed expendable. And it is rewarding work, she said. I come to work and see true courage. I see women claiming the life that was intended for them. They work so hard to create a new life for themselves and their kids.

 

The Achievement Citation award was presented at a gala celebration that also honored recipients of CHAs Sister Mary Concilia Moran Award for a visionary leader; the Lifetime Achievement Award for a lifetime of contributions to the ministry; and the Midcareer Award, which recognizes remarkable achievement in the recipient's field.

 

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