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Skaggs Regional Medical Center in Branson has narrowed down its search for a partner, and one of the finalists can be found right here in Springfield. KSMU’s Melanie Foehrweiser has more.
The two finalists in the search for a partner are CoxHealth in Springfield and LifePoint Hospitals based out of Brentwood, Tennessee. The search began in January due to what Media Relations Specialist Michelle Leroux calls a "changing hospital landscape."
“Skaggs, like other rural independent hospitals, are having to shift to a new operational model. We have, you know, the evolving private insurance market, the financial crisis in healthcare reform, and it’s requiring many health systems to shift to new business models,” she says.
The board of directors looked for a partner who was a good strategic and cultural fit that also shared Skaggs’ values. Leroux says those values include quality care and healthcare expansion. The ultimate goal for the partnership is to make available the highest quality care for the community.
“Seeking a partner that’s going to be able to provide strategic resources and capital is going to help us in such areas like physician recruitment, advances in technology, implementation of healthcare reforms because there are going to be a lot of changes down the road in health care and we want to be able to stay on top of those,” she says.
The next step in the selection process is an intensive review period of the two finalists, which could last 60 to 90 days. The Skaggs Board of Directors will then sign a letter of intent with one of the finalists and make a formal recommendation to the Board of Trustees.
For KSMU News, I’m Melanie Foehrweiser.