Washington Health System to merge with UPMC
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
WHS Washington Hospital will be known as UPMC Washington following the merger with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, announced Tuesday.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
Washington Health System, which includes Washington Hospital, announced merger plans Tuesday with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).
Washington Health System is merging with University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).
WHS announced the merger Tuesday after signing a non-binding letter of intent to integrate WHS into UPMC.
According to WHS officials, the merger will expand local access to high-quality health care for patients in Washington and Greene counties.
“Our primary focus is to ensure the residents of Washington and Greene counties have local access to high-quality health care that is sustainable into the future,” said Brook Ward, president and CEO of WHS. “After careful consideration and analysis, we believe the best path forward is to affiliate with UPMC to achieve that goal.”
In a statement, WHS said its board of directors voted unanimously on June 1 to pursue affiliation discussions with UPMC.
Ward said the decision comes with mixed emotions.
“We’ve got a long legacy, 126 years of serving the community, and you don’t want that to change, but at the same time, I’m confident that with this move, we’ll be around for another 126 years,” said Ward.
Following the merger, Washington Hospital will be called UPMC Washington and WHS Greene will become UPMC Greene.
After determining last year that it was not feasible to remain independent, the WHS board of directors in December submitted a request for proposals to affiliate with a larger health care provider that could enhance the services and clinical offerings of WHS.
“The board spent a lot of time last year going through the process of saying we want to be independent, but because of health care economics, that wasn’t in the cards. So we looked at how are we going to keep high-quality health care, keep jobs, and if health care economics aren’t going to change, we’ve got to look elsewhere, and that led to the culmination of this decision in the last couple of weeks,” said Ward.
WHS already has several clinical arrangements and joint ventures with UPMC.
“From our experience working with UPMC and knowing their track record of providing outstanding patient care, it was an obvious choice to select UPMC as our partner going forward,” said Ward.
For the past several decades, WHS and UPMC have collaborated in several areas, including a collaboration with UPMC Hillman Cancer Center based at WHS Washington Hospital that offers cutting-edge cancer expertise and treatment and eliminates the inconvenience of traveling for care; UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Express Care clinic and other specialty clinics on the WHS Washington Hospital campus; UPMC’s Heart and Vascular Institute (HVI); and senior care services at Strabane Trails and Strabane Woods.
WHS Washington Hospital was also one of the original members of the UPMC Health Plan when it was launched 26 years ago.
Hospitals have faced unprecedented financial challenges due to changes in the healthcare system caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHS believes the affiliation with UPMC will help ensure “continued high-quality care that patients in the WHS community have come to expect over the past several decades.”
With more than 2,000 employees, WHS is the top employer in Washington County.
Ward said he anticipates there will be no job cuts within the health system, which includes Washington Hospital, WHS Greene in Waynesburg, and more than 40 off-site locations throughout three counties. It also includes diagnostic centers, outpatient care facilities, and the Wilfred R. Cameron Wellness Center, and hospice care.
“After the transaction date, it will be the same people working here that worked here in the past, the same doctors, nurses, and clinicians (patients) worked with,” said Ward. “It sounds like with this affiliation, everybody who wants a job is going to have a job. We’re not anticipating cuts in any department, and UPMC’s goal is to grow the campus bigger, and if that happens, there will be more jobs.”
The organizations are hoping to come to a definitive agreement over the next several months, but no deadline has been set.
“UPMC looks forward to pursuing this affiliation that would integrate WHS into the UPMC system and preserve and enhance high-quality health care services for communities served by WHS,” said Paul Wood, Vice President and Chief Communications Officer at UPMC. “As WHS and UPMC move forward with the process, including a customary due diligence period and regulatory review, we will keep our stakeholders and community updated as there are developments to share.”
Diana Irey Vaughan, chairperson of the Washington County Board of Commissioners, said she backs the health system’s merger decision.
“I support Washington Health System’s decision to combine to ensure health care is provided in our county, and that the 2,700-plus employees are to be retained,” Irey Vaughan said Tuesday.
Said Dan Miller, chairman of WHS Board of Directors, “The board and senior leadership of WHS have realized, that in today’s health care environment, we need to consider the long-term stability of our health system to continue to provide the quality health care services our local residents have come to expect. With that goal, we are excited to be able to affiliate with UPMC, a premier integrated health care system, to continue our mission of great patient care.”