Sisters in Solidarity

We seek a just, compassionate, and interdependent world, where the health needs of those most vulnerable are prioritized and medical professionals have the necessary resources to serve their communities.

Solidarity Bridge Vision Statement

Our vision statement guides every step of our work and grounds us in our commitment to care. At our 2023 FIESTA Gala, we are recognizing a sister organization (actually a Sisters organization!) that shares this vision – an organization that has done more than any other to help us advance our aspiration that medical professionals have the necessary resources to serve their communities in Bolivia and Paraguay.

Puente de Solidaridad (PdS) staff from Bolivia visited Springfield in May 2019 to tour the warehouse and personally thank HSMO for their support. PdS Medical Supplies Coordinator José Choque sorted through surgical instruments with Vicki Detmers, HSMO Operations Manager.

Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach (HSMO) is a medical surplus recovery and redistribution program established in 2002 in a garage on the convent grounds of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, in Springfield, Illinois. Since then, HSMO’s warehouse and distribution space has grown to over 47,000 square feet. Its trucks crisscross the Midwest picking up high-quality supplies from 100 hospitals and clinics for shipment to over 90 countries. HSMO staff are experts—not only at collecting, sorting, and packing supplies for redistribution—but also at loading and managing logistics to ship donations around the world.

HSMO further exemplified true commitment to care when they helped establish industry-wide guidelines to avoid damaging pitfalls around international medical donations. Their volunteers inspect every donation, rejecting expired or obsolete items. And their in-house biomedical engineer ensures that all equipment is fully functionable before donation and that recipient countries and organizations can access consumables and parts for the equipment’s sustainable use. While these steps may sound obvious, they address issues that are commonly overlooked in global health.

José Choque discusses Bolivia’s equipment needs with HSMO’s biomedical engineer, Ratish Kumar.

Since 2008, HSMO has facilitated the shipping of twelve maritime containers to Bolivia and Paraguay, delivering over 80 tons of supplies for Solidarity Bridge medical and surgical programs and for public hospitals serving low-income communities throughout both countries. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, HSMO also facilitated an airfreight shipment of critical care equipment to Bolivia. Solidarity Bridge and HSMO are currently filling our 14th shipment, another 40’ maritime container to set sail for Bolivia this May and arrive in Cochabamba by August.

We look forward to celebrating our 17-year partnership with Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach at our FIESTA Gala on April 22, when we will present them with our Solidarity Award as an outstanding Organizational Partner. We look forward to many more years of fruitful collaboration, improving access to surgery for families in Bolivia and Paraguay!