Advocacy in the Community

Where does patient advocacy take place? Where should it take place? The health care field is increasing as new physicians, nurses, surgeons, and medical students enter it all determined to ensure the safety of their patients; to heal their patients. But in reality this healing takes place in the community before it can continue at a hospital.

Community initiated and community based, The Center for Ethics and Advocacy in Healthcare is a nonprofit organization that supports the north suburban families in Chicago. Since 1988, The Center has been answering, and responding to family crisis, helping families make wise decisions for their healthcare, teaching the community how to make effective decisions, working to change public policies in our healthcare systems, and much more.

The Center believes that advocacy starts when a patient is respected and appreciated for being unique. They refer to each patient’s uniqueness as human dignity. Knowing that human dignity is comprised of a body, a mind, and a spirit, The Center places invaluable integrity on a patient regardless of their physical capacity. However, human dignity can be compromised by lack of autonomy, the ability to make self-decisions regarding your healthcare. Thus, The Center strives to preserve patient dignity and their quality of life teaching their community to value their mission: “when we are weak, then we are strong.”

M. Margaret McDonnell, Founder/Director of The Center, offers one-on-one help to numerous families living around The Center who may not know where to turn with their questions. Ms. McDonnell aids families make decisions with respect to surgery, treatment options, and more. She reaches out to her community by visiting homes, hospitals, and nursing homes providing comfort to various patients and their families. Her work takes place on the streets of Techny, IL and addresses such questions as: “How can we live and die as whole human beings? How can suffering and death be integrated into the full spectrum of human life? How do love and justice intersect in a world of scarcity?”  

Finally, she trusts that the presence and the advocacy of The Center can help foster human dignity in each patient and family in the ever expanding healthcare system.