|
Officials from Bradford Regional Medical Center and Olean (N.Y.) General Hospital discuss integration of hospitals
By KYLE MILLIRON
Era Reporter
kylem@bradfordera.com
|
| Era photo by Francie Long |
|
|
| |
|
Bradford Regional Medical Center board president Edwin Pecht summed up the intent of the integration between BRMC and Olean (N.Y.) General Hospital with a terse statement during a meeting Wednesday at The Era.
“United we survive,” Pecht said, referring to a trend of fading U.S. hospitals.
According to a 2007 report from the American Hospital Association, there are 182 fewer hospitals nationwide than in 2000. Additionally, the number of hospitals across America has declined 20 percent since 1975.
In October, officials announced plans to integrate the two hospitals into a regional health care system operating under a parent company. George Leonhardt, BRMC president and chief executive officer, said the integration will buttress both hospitals against an increasingly difficult health care climate.
“The days of small, independent hospitals trying to go at it alone are numbered,” said Leonhardt. “We have common issues and common challenges, and we can’t miss this opportunity to integrate.”
Timothy Finan, president and CEO of OGH, said integrated health care systems are becoming more common.
Nearly 56 percent of community hospitals nationwide participate in some sort of multi-hospital system, according to data from the AHA.
OGH and BRMC recently began a “due diligence” review process, a detailed analysis of every “nook and cranny” within the two hospitals.
“This is a chance for us to learn from each other,” Finan said. “We’ll look at every contract, bylaw, inventory, information technology, our compliance programs, to help us understand the strengths of each hospital.”
The integration will affect approximately 150,000 residents in the greater-Olean and Bradford area.
Pecht pointed out that possibly the greatest benefit of the integration will be the increased ability to attract talent.
The integration is focused on increasing services at both BRMC and OGH, Finan had previously said. The increased services provide a more appealing platform when the hospitals try to attract physicians, specialists and management personnel.
“We are no longer Bradford and Olean,” Pecht said. “We are now a regional health care system.”
Pecht added that integration will also allow each hospital to better manage the strain of uncompensated care, the care the hospital gives out for free because of a patient’s inability to pay or a gap created when insurance companies only pay for a portion of the service’s cost. According to Pecht, last year uncompensated care at BRMC exceeded $1.3 million.
Employees at each hospital will undergo relatively little change, Finan said.
He explained some physicians may work a few days at each hospital, but in general the workforce of each hospital will remain separate.
When asked what benefits BRMC can provide for Olean-area patients, Finan said he is interested in Bradford’s cardiac catheterization and the long-term care, The Pavilion.
Bradford would get the benefit of a higher-level paramedic transportation with MercyFlight, a medical helicopter service that makes 450 flights per year, Finan said.
There are issues that must be addressed with insurance providers, but Finan added the hospitals “don’t anticipate any problems” with the companies as they have already been contacted.
 printer friendly version
 e-mail this story
Reader Comments
There are No comments posted. comments to this story.
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of bradfordera.com.
Submit a Comment
We encourage your feedback and dialog, all comments will be reviewed by our Web staff before appearing on the Web site.
|
