CHSLI : History

"Catholic healthcare is one of the great stories of the contribution of the Catholic Church to the nation. This is an apostolic ministry of heroic proportions that deserves our respect, our support and our applause."
- Most Rev. William F. Murphy, S.T.D., Fourth Bishop of Rockville Centre

The Catholic healthcare ministry on Long Island has a rich legacy. Since the early 1900's the remarkable work of the women religious continues to inspire and nurture the healthcare apostolate of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Many of our healthcare providers originated as charitable institutions under the auspices of religious sponsors.

• St. Charles Hospital originated in 1907 as a home for the blind, crippled and retarded children of the area, established by the Daughters of Wisdom. The Daughters of Wisdom established Maryhaven Center of Hope in 1930.
• On March 18, 1959, the need for a health care facility on the south shore of Suffolk County was realized when the Daughter of Wisdom answered the call by opening the Good Samaritan Hospital. Currently the largest hospital in the network at 537 beds, its emergency room sees over 95,000 patients annually.
• The Congregation of the Infant Jesus established the first Catholic hospital in Nassau County, Mercy Medical Center, when they began to serve patients in a converted sanitarium with 16 beds and 14 bassinets in 1913.
• In 1922, the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary founded a summer camp for inner-city children, some of whom were afflicted with rheumatic fever.From these origins grew St. Francis Hospital.
• The Sisters of St. Dominic founded Our Lady of Consolation Nursing & Rehabilitative Care Center in 1894 as St. Catherine's Infirmary.
• The Nursing Sisters of the Sick Poor in Brooklyn established Nursing Sisters Home Care in 1905.
• The Diocese of Rockville Centre became the sponsor of the hospitals, nursing homes and Maryhaven in the late 1950's and early 1960's.
• In 1997 the Diocese of Rockville Centre established Catholic Health Services of Long Island (CHS) to oversee its healthcare organizations.
• In 1998, Nursing Sisters Home Agency came under the auspices of the Diocese of Rockville Centre through CHS. Our most recent addition is St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center and Nursing Home, purchased from the Episcopal Health System in 2001.

In keeping with our mission of service to those people and communities whose social condition puts them at the margins of society, CHS provides over $59 million a year in care for the poor, the uninsured, and underserved. While much of this service is provided in emergency rooms and clinics, CHS also provides hundreds of free or reduced-fee outreach programs to improve individual and community health. Among programs targeted to low-income communities, seniors, women, children, and others with special needs, are health education screenings, support groups, counseling services, immunization programs, nutrition, transportation, patient education, advocacy for the poor, and blood drives.

Catholic healthcare on Long Island has built a distinguished tradition of operating community-based hospitals and human service organizations. These services have become widely valued for the high quality of their compassionate care for people from all walks of life and of every religious belief and ethnic group.