Who We Help

In the past decade the uninsured population has ballooned and St. Catherine’s is now providing thousands of patient visits each year for both acute illnesses and chronic disease management. According to the 2008 Household Health Survey completed by the Community Health Data Base, there are 237,000 adults in Southeastern Pennsylvania without health insurance (Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware and Chester Counties) which represents 1 in 10 adults without health insurance.  The survey reported that 6 in 10 uninsured adults are employed either full or part time and that racial/ethnic minorities are at a greater risk for being uninsured than white adults.  Philadelphia County represents 16% of this uninsured population, nearly double that of the other counties represented. Cost is a large factor for those seeking medical care as nearly 45% of the uninsured did not seek treatment due to cost as compared to 10% of those with insurance.

The target population of St. Catherine’s is simple; you must be uninsured to receive care.  We have no geographic limitations however if there is an alternative option in a geography closer to your home the patient will be referred to another organization.  Our patients often come to us quite ill because they have been without health care for extended times.  Most have utilized the ER when they became sick enough to need attention, and we see many patients referred from Chestnut Hill and Einstein Hospitals and Emergency Rooms in addition to several other area hospitals.  None of our patients qualify for medical assistance or welfare, leaving them with no access to the health care system. Our patients: 90% are African American, 99% are low-income, 95% are age 26-65, and 60% are employed, although increasingly we are seeing patients who have lost their health insurance with their jobs. 

Being located in an impoverished inner-city neighborhood plagued by urban violence, often our patients are directly affected by street violence; recently one of our patients was savagely beaten and robbed as she entered her home in the middle of the day.  The stresses of poverty and living in impoverished neighborhoods take a very real and very heavy toll on the health of our patients.  Our practitioners address the issues of violence and poverty and assess the effects on each person, utilizing appropriate medical and psychosocial therapies as needed.