The St. Joseph’s Health Care Society is a sponsor of Catholic health care. Formed in 1993, our roots go back more than 150 years to when the Sisters of St. Joseph along with other congregations of Sisters founded hospitals and other health care organizations across Canada to care for the sick and vulnerable.

With fewer members available to serve in their health care ministry in the 1990s, the Sisters recognized that if the healing ministry of Jesus was to continue under Catholic sponsorship, the mission could no longer rest solely on their shoulders. This directly led to the formation of Sponsors – also known as Public Juridic Persons - across Canada. The passing of the torch had begun.

A Sponsor acts on behalf of the Catholic Church to ensure that the treasure of the Sisters’ health care ministry continues to be animated and celebrated, now and into the future. Canon law, which sets norms for the Church’s ministries, including health care, describes a public juridic person much in the same way as a corporation is defined in civil law (canons 113-123). A key characteristic of a Sponsor is that its activities not only must fulfill a role in keeping with the Church’s mission but also constitutes the work of the Church itself and not simply the interests of a collective of individuals.

The Society provides sponsorship to health care organizations in 3 cities spanning across southwestern Ontario. Consistent with hopes emanating from Vatican II, it is governed by a Board of Directors comprised largely of lay individuals, all committed to accepting responsibility to further the legacy and vitality of Catholic health care today and helping the four organizations sponsored by the Society make decisions through the lens of Catholic health care tradition.