EPIC Assumes Management of San Gorgonio Hospital
December 01, 2010
San Gorgonio Memorial Healthcare District has entered into a 10-year agreement with EPIC Management, L.P. to manage San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital, effective Nov. 22. The hospital had previously been under the management of Tennessee-based HealthTech Management Services.
The agreement calls for EPIC to provide broad oversight on all operations at the hospital and is based primarily on the previous management contract with HealthTech. Day-to-day operations will still be performed at the hospital level, with Chief Executive Officer Mark Turner and Chief Financial Officer Dave Recupero continuing their roles as employees of the hospital. An additional key provision of the contract includes a medical staff development component and recruitment of physicians from five different specialties. Because EPIC’s core business is management of physician groups and medical practices, it is uniquely positioned to help San Gorgonio Memorial enhance its breadth of physician specialty coverage. A large portion of San Gorgonio Memorial’s patient base comes from Beaver Medical Group, the largest EPIC-managed medical group. Many of these patients need to be transferred to other hospitals due to a lack of specialty coverage.
“We are very excited about this additional opportunity to help shape the delivery of healthcare in the Banning-Beaumont area,” said EPIC President and Chief Executive Officer John Goodman. “We believe this important strategic relationship will yield tremendous benefits for the citizens and patients in Banning-Beaumont, the physicians who practice at San Gorgonio Memorial or in the area at large, and all of EPIC’s partners.” One of those partners is Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center (LLUAHSC), which includes Loma Linda University Medical Center. LLUAHSC is a significant investor in EPIC, and expressed support for the arrangement during negotiations on the management contract.
“The contractual relationship with EPIC means that operational oversight of the hospital will return to the local level,” states Mr. Turner. “It is an honor to continue in my role as CEO of the hospital, and I am looking forward to working with EPIC Management to expand our hospital’s services. EPIC will help us recruit the surgeons and specialists we need to allow community residents to receive more of their patient care locally, and will provide us with management services support that is local to our market. Through their affiliation with Beaver Medical Group, we believe they have the resources we need to be successful.”