St. John's Health and Sublette County Rural Health Care District expand partnership

St. John's Medical Center (SJMC) and Sublette County Rural Health Care District (SCRHCD) will expand their current affiliation agreement, formalized in 2015. As a next step, the two medical communities will jointly explore developing a management agreement to provide administrative guidance for SCRHD by SJMC to assure success with shared goals in quality of care and sustainability.

SJMC operates a full-service hospital, Living Center, and eight primary care and specialty physician practices based in Jackson, WY. SCRHCD is a Rural Health Care District in Sublette County, WY, that operates two primary care clinics with urgent/emergent care capability as well as the county's EMS service. The two medical communities have historically had many patients in common due to the availability of excellent primary care and urgent care services in Sublette County and specialty medical care and advanced diagnostic and treatment equipment and technology at SJMC. "This growing partnership reflects a longstanding tradition of working together to benefit patient care," said St. John's CEO Paul Beaupre, MD. "It's a great model for rural health care because it helps keep healthcare local and improves the sustainability of the organizations involved."

The affiliation from 2015 has achieved many successes, including improved coordination of medical care for patients who require the services of both health systems, including ease of scheduling and transmission of information. In addition, the two entities have worked closely together on initiatives for quality improvement, development of services, purchasing agreements, and information technology. In the past 18 months, the partnership has resulted in the introduction of mammography and screening colonoscopy in Sublette County, as well as regular cardiology and diabetes clinics.

“We are excited to take our lengthy relationship with SJMC to another level. Their commitment to quality patient care, not only in their home area, but in Sublette County as well, makes this an easy and very comfortable step,” said Laura Clark, Chairman of the SCRHCD Board.

St. John's Medical Center and Sublette County Rural Health Care District are members of a group of independent community health care organizations in western U.S that are now affiliated with University of Utah Health Care. Spurred on by growing economic, regulatory, and operational challenges, many stand-alone hospitals and clinics are pursuing affiliations with larger health systems in order to survive and thrive in the new healthcare environment. In addition to their clinical value, affiliations with high quality systems are expected to improve overall quality of care and financial sustainability for small independent health systems. With this as an overarching goal, both entities are looking forward to the work that will be done over the next several weeks in making the management agreement a reality.

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Media contact: Karen Connelly, 307.739.7380, kconnelly@tetonhospital.org

ABOUT ST. JOHN’S MEDICAL CENTER
St. John's Medical Center in Jackson, Wyoming, offers patient-centered clinical excellence and community wellness services through a full-service hospital, primary care, and specialty physician practices, and a long-term care Living Center. For more information, visit tetonhospital.org

ABOUT ST. JOHN’S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
The mission of the St. John’s Hospital Foundation is to secure philanthropic support to advance the mission and strategic objectives of St. John’s Medical Center, including patient-centered care, clinical excellence, and community wellness.

Note: This article was edited on May 4.