Dose of Reality: Staying Local
Written by Jill Rose   
Friday, 29 February 2008

Dose of Reality - Jill Rose's Column - Health Executive - RedCoat Publishing
Jill Rose
It’s not a silver bullet for the woes of all struggling community hospitals, but it’s
something worth considering. I’m talking about the new network of doctors on Boston’s South Shore called Signature Healthcare, developed by Brockton Hospital to keep more patients local.

The town of Brockton, Mass. is located less than 20 miles from Boston, so in the past, it was common for Brockton physicians to refer patients to specialists there. The network was formed to provide patients with all of their healthcare needs locally and includes the hospital, Bridgewater Goddard Park Medical Associates, Primary Care Affiliates, Women’s Health Affiliates, Brockton Hospital Specialty Physician’s Group, and the Brockton Hospital School of Nursing.

According to a January 24 Boston Globe article, members of Signature Healthcare will share electronic medical record keeping. Physicians in the network will also use the same prescription drug formula, allowing the hospital to leverage its buying power on those drugs. And, of course, physicians will refer to specialists within the network, although patients can still choose to see any specialist covered by their insurance.

Norman Goodman, president of Signature Healthcare, told the Globe that laboratories that have been run at the various group sites will merge, forming a single laboratory and saving the company $1 million right away.

This type of setup appears to be working well for the healthcare entities. Independent physicians say they are pleased to have the resources of a larger system for the first time, and physicians can now work as a team rather than competing with one another.
And several similar networks in the Boston area have shown that the multi-specialty provider model advocated by the Group Health Association of America can be highly successful. On Boston’s North Shore, this is evidenced by The Lahey Clinic, which the Globe says has been called a pioneer in merging services under an umbrella organization. Similarly, Partners HealthCare is a regional group that includes Boston’s Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General along with a large number of specialty and community hospitals in Eastern Massachusetts.

Of course, whether patients will be drawn in large numbers to the new network is still in question, but proximity is an important factor for many. The Globe article tells the story of an Ellen Paderson, an Easton, Mass. woman who was able to avoid frequent trips with her father to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston in advance of his surgery. Paderson said when his insurance company said it would not pay for the operation in Boston because there was a physician in Brockton that could do it, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the trips to Boston were stressful.

Eventually, the family joined the Signature network, with Paderson saying it was easier on her parents, and she is pleased to have good care close to home.

 
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