A Mission with Meaning
“To share God’s love by providing physical, mental and spiritual healing.”
–Adventist Health Mission Statement
As popular as mission statements are in today’s business environment, few employees can recite them and even fewer live out these statements in their professional and personal lives. At Adventist Health, we believe that we fulfill our sacred calling only when every one of our employees embraces, internalizes and lives our mission.
Spiritual Care: It’s Everybody’s Job
Five years ago, Adventist Health launched its Mission Education Program. Since that time, every hospital leader across the system has had the opportunity to participate in the four-unit series, which educates employees about Adventist Health’s heritage and mission of whole-person care.
“At Adventist Health, we challenge ourselves to be the most mission-driven organization in the nation,” stated Wayne Judd, Adventist Health assistant vice president of mission and planning. “There are no spectators in this arena. Every one of our 17,000 employees is a participant, as are our medical staff and volunteers.”
An Ongoing Process
While the Mission Education Program has been met with great enthusiasm and success, ensuring that a sense of mission is pervasive across our organization is an ongoing endeavor. Oversight and direction are essential to further enable our staff to stay committed to this ever-evolving process.
As a result, a mission planning committee provides oversight to strategic initiatives, including Adventist Health’s Mission Conference, the Mission Education Program, mission-related publications and core-defining documents such as the mission, vision and values statements. This formal committee—appointed by Adventist Health’s board of directors and chaired by Larry Dodds, Adventist Health senior vice president—is comprised of church leaders, Adventist Health employees and board members.
“Our mission planning committee is a very important part of our mission program, and we work together to ensure that mission remains our top priority,” said Dodds. “We look for new and meaningful ways to educate employees about the importance of our mission and how they can become an active part in sharing it with those they come in contact with.”
New Mission Brochure
With input from the committee, Adventist Health recently produced a new brochure aimed at explaining Adventist beliefs. “What Do Adventists Believe?” is accessible to patients and visitors alike. It provides an easy, straightforward overview of distinctive Adventist beliefs, including the Ten Commandments, prayer, the Sabbath, baptism and wholesome lifestyle choices. The brochure—available in both English and Spanish—also gives a brief historical overview of Adventist health care.
“This brochure is just one more way we communicate the importance of Adventist health care and our commitment to mission,” stated Judd. “We’re proud of our Adventist heritage and want to share our history and values with our employees, patients and visitors.”
If you’d like to further explore Adventist Health’s commitment to mission with a complimentary copy of Adventist Health’s beliefs brochure, please contact Judd at (916) 781-4760.
Wayne Judd (center), Adventist Health assistant vice president for mission and planning, explains the importance of the Sabbath with employees via the Mission Education Program.
Adventist Healths new mission brochure gives a brief overview of Adventist beliefs.
