Beyond the hospital walls. Saint Raphael's vision of care includes jobs, home loans, and a reading room.

Saint Raphael Health System is based in inner-city New Haven, CT, an area plagued by poverty, unemployment, and high infant mortality. Its leaders have long realized that healthcare involves more than curing diseases and patching wounds. Thus, in 1922, they launched Saint Raphael's Neighborhood Plan, which has five main components. The Neighborhood Reading Room, in a police substation, gives children a place to read, do homework, and get off the streets. The Neighborhood Home Ownership program helps Saint Raphael employees buy homes in the neighborhood. The Neighborhood Scholarships program gives eligible residents an opportunity to study full time at a state university or vocational school. The Neighborhood Career Counseling and Job Skills Assistance program has enabled Saint Raphael to hire 30 neighborhood residents and help others find jobs elsewhere. Reaching beyond its immediate neighborhood, Saint Raphael also operates school-based health centers, clinics for elderly, a mobile clinic for pregnant women and new mothers, a parish nurse program in 21 area churches and congregations, and a home care network. In addition, Saint Raphael is working with the local United Way and other organizations to conduct a community needs assessment; working with Yale University and other organizations to increase neighborhood stability; and operating a program for the early detection of breast and cervical cancer in uninsured and underinsured women.