NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Nov. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- IPC, the nation’s foremost hospitalist company, announced today that it has entered into a two-year agreement with Saint Anthony’s Health Center in Alton, Illinois, to provide coverage for all unassigned patients in the emergency department as well as inpatient care for many of the patients admitted by primary care physicians who practice at that hospital.
Hospitalists are acute-care specialists who focus on a patient’s hospital care from time of admission to discharge. As the nation’s fastest-growing medical specialty, hospitalists have become the true drivers of inpatient medicine by coordinating all of the tests, treatments and services that take place within the hospital. Increasing evidence has shown that hospitalists increase quality of care and reduce healthcare costs while providing patients added comfort and security.
IPC’s hospitalists have been caring for patients in the neighboring St. Louis area for nearly six years. Currently the company employs 33 physicians locally who collectively see more than 125,000 patients annually at 20 local hospitals. Dr. D’Andrienne Jones, a native of Alton, will be the lead physician in this new relationship with Saint Anthony’s.
“At the request of a number of our primary care physicians, we were able to secure the services of these hospitalists,” said Bill Kessler, FACHE, president/chief executive officer of Saint Anthony’s Health Center. “We are pleased to partner with IPC, which will allow primary care physicians more time in their offices for preventive care and management of a patient’s disease before hospitalization. The hospitalists will serve as a wonderful complement to our healthcare team. They are a valuable resource to those physicians with very busy practices due to the loss of physicians from the malpractice crisis.”
Saint Anthony’s emergency services sees over 20,000 patients each year. Five years ago Saint Anthony’s became the first hospital recognized by the state of Illinois as an “Emergency Facility for Pediatrics.” Saint Anthony’s is also designated as a “Resource Hospital,” making it a training and certification site for the community’s emergency responders.
Founded in 1995, IPC employs approximately 300 physicians nationwide and manages more than $1 billion in healthcare expenditures annually. In addition to St. Louis, IPC has practice locations in California’s Bay Area, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Fort Worth, Houston, Las Vegas, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, San Antonio and Tucson. The company also has a consulting services division that helps hospitals and other healthcare organizations launch new hospitalist programs or enhance existing ones.
Information on IPC may be obtained at http://www.hospitalist.com/.
IPC - the Hospitalist Company
CONTACT: Ross Goldberg of IPC - The Hospitalist Company, +1-818-597-8453
Web site: http://www.hospitalist.com/