Area Hospitals Form Rural Health Partnership
Williamsport, September 25, 2002 - The creation of a formal "rural health network" by four area hospitals was announced today at a press conference at the District Office of the Department of Health in Williamsport. Called the Susquehanna Valley Rural Health Partnership (SVRHP), the collaborative venture seeks to improve access to and delivery of needed health services to rural communities in Clinton, Lycoming and Sullivan counties.
The partnership, organized as a not-for-profit corporation, is comprised of Jersey Shore Hospital, Bucktail Medical Center, Muncy Valley Hospital and The Williamsport Hospital & Medical Center. Its status as a rural health network also affords SVRHP the opportunity to apply for substantial state and federal grant dollars earmarked for improving the healthcare infrastructure of rural communities; something the region's county, state and federal elected officials have been very supportive of.
In making the announcement, Lisa Davis, Director of the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health, praised the Partnership, saying it represented a major step forward in strengthening and expanding the region's framework for delivering quality care using the latest medical and information technologies. Davis added that the SVRHP is the first rural network in Pennsylvania created under the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program that involves three "Critical Access Hospitals," Jersey Shore, Bucktail and Muncy, and their larger network partner, Williamsport Hospital.
According to Lawrence Baronner, Critical Access Hospital Coordinator in the PA Office of Rural Health, Critical Access Hospital status is a federal designation that was created under the Rural Hospital Flexibility Program. The designation enables smaller, rural hospitals to maintain financial stability in spite of the lower volumes associated with rural communities. All Critical Access Hospitals must have a working relationship with a larger, referral hospital, which in this case is the Williamsport Hospital.
Lou Ditzel, President and CEO of Jersey Shore Hospital and the Partnership's President, echoed Davis's enthusiasm. "Through the collaborative efforts of these organizations, residents in our rural communities within Lycoming, Clinton and Sullivan counties will reap the benefits of improved access, financial stability and new technologies that might have otherwise been difficult or impossible to deliver."
Referencing the reasons for creating the multi-hospital partnership, Ditzel noted, "As individual providers, we face continuing challenges on many fronts in the delivery of healthcare services. One in five Americans live in rural areas and those over the age of 65 comprise a larger portion of this population. The percentage of people living in poverty in rural America is also greater today, as is the proportion of those with inadequate or no health insurance. In addition to demographic and economic challenges, we are faced with aging facilities, healthcare professional shortages, greater travel distances to access care and an ongoing effort to provide the latest medical and information technologies. In the absence of collaboration with other organizations, the strain of addressing these challenges can be enormous for the independent rural hospital."
As a collaborative network of area healthcare providers, the partnership will attempt to develop an improved model for the integrated management of rural healthcare that will emphasize quality and accessibility in areas of need, as well as the preservation of local providers. The partnership will coordinate with existing, community-based health organizations, the PA Department of Health (DOH) and the Office of Rural Health in addressing the State's Health Improvement Plan (SHIP).
A significant goal of SVRHP will be to integrate the programs and services of community-based organizations (where possible), such that results can be greater than the sum of the parts in supporting wellness. Information systems technology will be at the forefront of these efforts. Physician recruitment, access to capital for improvements, health education and communication will also be focal points for the partnership. Specific opportunities might include expansion of radiology and other ancillary services, Internet access to medical information, mobile diagnostic services, specialty clinics and health screening programs.
In addition to Ditzel, the Partnership's officers include Lennea Brown, Bucktail Medical Center, as Vice President; Neil Armstrong, Muncy Valley Hospital, as Treasurer; and Steven Johnson, The Williamsport Hospital & Medical Center, as Secretary.
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