ROME — Rome Memorial Hospital (RMH) is pursuing new options for a potential affiliation partner after suspending its talks with Bassett Medical Center on Oct. 14. Bassett Medical Center is part of the Bassett Healthcare Network, which is based in Cooperstown. But as of Oct. 20, RMH hadn’t started new discussions with any other organization. […]
ROME — Rome Memorial Hospital (RMH) is pursuing new options for a potential affiliation partner after suspending its talks with Bassett Medical Center on Oct. 14.
Bassett Medical Center is part of the Bassett Healthcare Network, which is based in Cooperstown.
But as of Oct. 20, RMH hadn’t started new discussions with any other organization.
“As of this time, Rome Memorial Hospital has not entered into discussions about affiliation with any other health-care organization,” Basil Ariglio, president and CEO of Rome Memorial, said in a statement to the Business Journal News Network (BJNN).
Ariglio provided his statement in response to a BJNN inquiry for additional information about the RMH-Bassett situation.
In its email inquiry, BJNN asked for an example of why RMH didn’t feel comfortable with an affiliation agreement, considering Ariglio had described the two facilities as “like-minded organizations” in many respects in a news release he distributed on Oct. 14.
“Confidentiality requirements in the non-binding Letter of Intent signed by Rome Memorial Hospital and Bassett Healthcare dictate that we cannot discuss the particular reasons for our decision not to move forward with the affiliation,” said Ariglio.
Dr. Vance Brown, president and CEO of Bassett Medical Center, reacted to the development in a statement that Bassett released Oct. 16.
“Bassett has been sincere in its efforts to pursue an affiliation that I believe would have potentially benefited both organizations as well as our patients. It is the kind of strategic alliance that has the potential to make the most of the changes occurring under health reform in order to meet the needs of the population we serve.
Toward that end, Bassett remains open to discussing opportunities in Oneida County,” said Brown.
Moving on
The board voted “unanimously” to approve the recommendation that Ariglio made in consultation with the hospital’s consultant and legal counsel, Dr. Chester Patrick, chairman of the RMH board, said.
The decision follows “several months of careful evaluation,” RMH said in the news release.
RMH’s board three years ago made the decision to explore opportunities to collaborate with other organizations to prepare for the “changing healthcare environment,” the release noted.
The board developed specific community objectives based upon feedback from a cross-section of members of the medical staff and community members and initiated discussions with several organizations.
RMH in November 2013 signed a nonbinding letter of intent to explore an affiliation relationship with Bassett.
“We share a commitment to clinical quality and recognize the imperative to deliver efficient and cost-effective care,” Ariglio said in the Oct. 14 news release. “However, as we moved through the process, it became apparent that the relationship with Bassett would not satisfy the objectives of the hospital or the people we serve.”
Ariglio also emphasized that the hospital’s effort to find an affiliation partner will continue.
“We will renew discussions with other organizations, who have continued to express interest in collaborating with us to strengthen the continuum of care for our community,” Ariglio said.
Even though RMH decided to move in a different direction, “the imperative to collaborate hasn’t changed,” he explained.
“We need to be prepared for new risk-based contracts that reward providers for keeping our patients healthy. The only way to improve our population’s health is through better care coordination, built upon a strong foundation of primary and preventative care. The process we went through over the last 11 months has been invaluable and will assist the hospital as we evaluate future affiliation opportunities,” Ariglio stated.
In its inquiry, BJNN also asked Ariglio to explain how the process with Bassett will help RMH moving forward.
“Working through an affiliation process with another health-care organization allows you to see how that organization can help your hospital and community in ways you may not have realized initially. Moving forward, we will look for those benefits we identified during our discussions with Bassett as we begin discussions with other potential affiliations,” he said.
He also noted that RMH has “no set timeline” to complete a potential affiliation agreement with another health-care organization.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com