Health Ministry

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Health Ministry at St. Monica promotes the spiritual health of the whole person and is supported by a Providence St. John’s Faith Community Nurse (Parish Nurse). Through a mind, body, and spirit approach, Health Ministry offers health and wellness information to our parish community. This approach expands and builds upon our parish’s traditional outreach of visitation to the sick, support groups, and referrals to community agencies.

This past year our programming included very informative presentations on Women's Health, Men's Health, Catholic Teaching on End-of-Life Care, Red Cross Blood Drives, COVID-19, Stroke Prevention, and Advance Directives. In 2021, we're launching our Healthcare Provider Prayer Services and will be back with more Healthy Living Speaker Series talks, including our upcoming one: Get the Facts about the COVID-19 Vaccine!

Christine Gerety, or (310) 566-1531.

Healthcare Provider Prayer Service

Wednesday, Feb. 10 | 7:00 p.m. | Conducted via Zoom

All healthcare providers are invited to our very first online Health Ministry Prayer Service for Healthcare Providers! We'll be gathering on Wednesday, February 10, at 7 p.m. Our service, conducted by members of our Health Ministry, will include the opportunity to reflect on Scripture; gather in worship & music; pray for ourselves, our patients, our colleagues & families; and join in fellowship.

To register, please go to: https://stmonica.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcqdO2qqDMrEtPRozlnFdfMlhp-TKIV-yN6

For more information, please contact Christine at or 310-566-1531.

Healthy Living Speaker Series: Get the Facts about the COVID-19 Vaccine

Wednesday, Feb. 24 | 7:00 p.m. | Zoom

We welcome two experts & leaders in this area: Dr. Joseph Pisegna, M.D., and Dr. Karen Pavic-Zabinski, Ph.D., M.A., M.B.A., M.S.N., Regional Director of Ethics, Providence Health System.

We are blessed to have two St. Monica parishioners & healthcare experts who have much to share with us about the COVID-19 vaccines! Dr. Joseph Pisegna has played a leadership role in the development and testing of the Moderna vaccine. Dr. Karen Pavic-Zabinski, who has spoken with us previously, returns to share her expertise regarding Catholic bioethics.

pisegna pavic zabinski

The presentation will focus on COVID-19 vaccines, including the underlying science, vaccine safety, the Catholic bioethics perspective, and the vaccination process.

Click Here to Register for the Zoom!

About Our Speakers

Dr. Joseph Pisegna is Professor of Medicine at UCLA and Chief of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System. Dr. Pisegna is interested in the molecular pharmacology of hormones and receptors in the gastrointestinal tract, especially the diagnosis and management of islet cell tumors of the pancreas, including the Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome. These research and clinical interests derive from research in the biochemistry and physiology of neuroendocrine tumors. While a fellow at the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Pisegna first developed a clinical interest in the Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome (ZES), where he discovered and cloned the receptor for gastrin and named it the cholecystokinin B receptor. More recently, Dr. Pisegna has demonstrated that receptors for gastrin are present in the kidney and mediate food-induced regulation of salt excretion.

Dr. Pisegna was recruited to the faculty at the University of California, Los Angeles and the Center for Ulcer Research and Education (CURE) in 1996. He is a recipient of the VA Career Development Award at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. His addition to the faculty of the UCLA Center for Pancreatic Diseases provides unsurpassed expertise in the diagnosis and medical management of pancreatic endocrine tumors.

Dr. Karen Pavic-Zabinski is the Southern California Regional Director of Ethics for Providence St. Joseph Health. She is a healthcare professional having worked in the ED, ICU, OR, and in-patient Psychiatric clinical settings. She has also held senior leadership positions in product/strategic marketing and clinical research for several biotech corporations including Baxter, Johnson & Johnson, and Bristol Myers Squibb. Karen holds a PhD in Theology and Ethics, and Graduate Degrees in Nursing, in Theology, in Bioethics, in Clinical Psychology, and in Business. Prior to coming to the Providence Health System, Karen was the graduate director of The Bioethics Institute at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. As the Regional Director of Ethics, she is responsible for ethics education and programming throughout Los Angeles and Orange County. She has been a parishioner at St. Monica for many years and serves as a Eucharistic Minister.