Anthony Tersigni, president and CEO of  the Ascension,  based in St.Louis and America’s largest nonprofit hospital system, discusses the need for a holistic approach in today’s healthcare world means that “patient-centered care” is not enough. Rather, the phrase should be “person-centered” care as we move away from the old “provider-centric” model.

He says: “We view person-centered care as our sacred promise to support individuals’ lifelong health and well-being through holistic care. It’s something that goes back to our roots. We have a 200-year legacy of caring for the whole person — body, mind and spirit. ….We believe, as care develops in the future, it’s going to become much more personalized than it has been in the past. Bottom line, the emphasis on person-centered care is our way of demonstrating the commitment that our founders have had for the last 200 years.”

He says that all  this  means more work at Ascension for  such professions as social workers, nutritionists, coaches and partners for health.

He said: “Our destination point is to develop the capabilities to take care of millions of lives from birth to death.”