Catholic health care seen as covenant, not contract, with patients

Published: 2006-10-03

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When hospitals promote patient safety, they can also improve efficiency and save money. But for Catholic health institutions, that's not really the point, according to Father Michael D. Place. "All of health care is bound by the imperative to do no harm," said the former president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, who is now vice president for ministry development at Resurrection Health Care in Chicago. Catholic and secular health care institutions both have "a contractual relationship with those they serve, so in one sense there is no difference in their ethical obligations," he said in a Sept. 21 telephone interview with Catholic News Service. "The difference comes at another level, in their motivation," he said. In Catholic institutions, where the dignity of the human person should be paramount, the relationship between patients and caregivers moves "beyond the negative obligation to do no harm to the positive relationship of covenant," he added.

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