The Sisters want to preserve the option of health care in religious settings for the people of the region who want that option, and they believe their health ministries will be stronger together than if they remained separate. Both groups of Sisters are also very interested in helping smaller rural communities maintain needed health services, and that is why they have offered the opportunity to use the Avera name to all their managed facilities. When Sisters sponsor an institution or ministry, they imbue it with their values and mission. These include Catholicity, embodying Jesus touch as we care for people, prayer and spirituality, a commitment to attending to the poor, hospitality, and justice in the workplace. The Sisters nurture these values through witness, through orientation and education programs and through retaining the authority of governance.
Ownership refers to the incorporation of institutions and is a civil classification.
Each of the Sisters cosponsored institutions is a separately incorporated legal entity. Each is non-profit, which means that all net revenues are retained by the institution for upgrading services and property, or returned to the community in the form of charity care and other benefits to the community. No one, including the Sisters, reaps financial benefit from these revenues. The Sisters bring their mission and values to the health system. Instead of being solely a business, Avera Health is a ministry.