St. John the Evangelist Leadership Guild gets preview of new addiction medicine center

Members of the St. John the Evangelist Leadership Guild gathered for their fall meeting recently and got a preview of the development occurring in Cleveland’s Central neighborhood where St. Vincent Charity Medical Center once stood. The hospital, founded by the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine, opened in 1865, as the Civil War was ending. It served the city until it closed in November 2022. The building was demolished in 2025.

But the Sisters of Charity Health System, which operated the hospital, did not abandon the neighborhood. Instead, the St. Vincent Charity Health & Healing Hub is rising to serve the community.

Sister Judith Ann Karam, CSA congregational leader, and Michael Goar, president and CEO of the health system, shared information about the project and the Sister Ignatia Gavin, CSA Center for Addiction Medicine which is located across the street in the health system’s building.

Goar describes the Health & Healing Hub as “a continuum of care” that will address the complex realities of the neighborhood by offering a coordinated system of care through a connected, whole-person approach. The health system held listening sessions to discern the needs of neighborhood residents.

In addition to Goodwill, the Health and Healing Hub already is home to these  key collaborators:

• The Centers – which will provide behavioral health services and detox center
• Neighborhood Family Practice – which will offer primary healthcare
• Women Religious Archive Collaborative (WRAC) – preparing to break ground on a heritage center celebrating and remembering the rich history of women religious.
• Marion-Sterling School Partnership – supporting school attendance and learning outcomes.

Additionally, the health system’s ministries in the hub include:

• Mission Kitchen – providing meals and nutrition access
• Joseph and Mary’s Home – providing medical respite to the unhoused
• Rosary Hall – addiction treatment services expanded with the addition of the Sister Ignatia Gavin Center for Addiction Medicine on the second floor of the health system building.
• Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood – working to influence the social drivers of health in the Central Neighborhood through partnerships and programs that align with the mission of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine.
• Pharmacy services
• Outpatient mental health services
• Primary care

“For 175 years, the sisters have always responded to God’s call,” said Sister Karam. “And we’ve never done it alone.”