MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Children’s Hospitals and Clinics announced today it has signed a Letter of Intent to join Park Nicollet Health Services and Allina Hospitals & Clinics in their partnership to create a medical campus in Maple Grove.
This three-way collaboration will offer residents in the northwest suburbs direct access to the largest number of highly specialized physicians of any hospital in the Twin Cities. Further, this collaboration creates a new model of health care delivery that provides high quality health care services while maximizing the use of health care resources.
“In an area where young families with children comprise one of the fastest growing demographic groups, Children’s will bring to Maple Grove much needed ambulatory and acute care pediatric services,” said Alan Goldbloom, MD, President and CEO, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics. “At the same time, Children’s presence in Maple Grove will facilitate immediate access to more complex pediatric care at its hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul.”
“The addition of Children’s completes the circle of care,” said David Wessner, President and CEO, Park Nicollet Health Services. “Our collaboration gives the Maple Grove community access to an unparalleled range of providers and programs. Working together we have the combined resources to move more quickly and efficiently.”
“The proposed medical campus is an extension of our three organizations’ current service to residents in the Maple Grove area,” said Dick Pettingill, President and CEO, Allina Hospital and Clinics. “Together, more than 40 percent of people needing hospital services from the community use Allina’s Mercy, Unity, Abbott Northwestern, and Buffalo hospitals, Park Nicollet’s Methodist Hospital or Children’s. Park Nicollet and Allina also have clinics serving this area. We are actively working with the community to “co-create” a health care campus that meets their needs.”
Park Nicollet and Allina first announced their collaboration in August 2004 after meeting with more than 100 community leaders. Park Nicollet currently holds an option to purchase the proposed 84-acre site located at the intersection of Dunkirk Lane and 97th Ave. North in Maple Grove. Fifty acres of the site are proposed for development and 34 acres of adjoining wetlands would remain undeveloped. The proposed site is currently accessible and does not require transportation upgrades for access.
A new hospital as part of the Children’s, Allina and Park Nicollet medical campus in Maple Grove would require an exemption to the legislative moratorium on building new hospital beds in Minnesota. On November 29, 2004, Park Nicollet and Allina submitted their application to the Department of Health for an exemption to the moratorium for a 250 bed hospital to be developed in two phases. Phase I would include 60-100 beds with a targeted completion of 2008. Phase II would include an additional 100-150 beds with a targeted completion date of 2012. The Department of Health will review all proposals and make a recommendation to the state legislature for consideration during the 2005 legislative session.
Children’s Hospitals and Clinics is the eighth-largest children’s health care organization in the U.S., with 313 staffed beds at its two hospitals in St. Paul and Minneapolis. A full range of pediatric specialty services, critical care, and clinics serve premature infants through older teens. While Children’s serves thousands of the Midwest region’s sick children each year, the organization also strives to keep children well and to prevent illness and injury. Children’s also includes Children’s West, an outpatient surgery, diagnostic, and rehabilitation center in Minnetonka; Children’s - Roseville, an outpatient rehabilitation center in Roseville; and Children’s Clinics - Woodwinds, pediatric specialty clinics at the Woodwinds Health Campus in Woodbury. Children’s Hospitals and Clinics can be found online at http://www.childrenshc.org/ .
Park Nicollet Health Services is an integrated care system that includes Methodist Hospital, Park Nicollet Clinic, Park Nicollet Foundation and Park Nicollet Institute. Park Nicollet Health Services is based in St. Louis Park and has almost 7,500 employees, including 543 physicians on staff. Park Nicollet Health Services can be found online at http://www.parknicollet.com/ .
Allina Hospitals & Clinics is a non-profit network of hospitals, clinics and other health care services, providing care throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Allina owns and operates 11 hospitals, 65 clinics, hospice services, pharmacies, and emergency medical transportation services. Allina Hospitals & Clinics can be found online at http://www.allina.com/ .
Web sites: http://www.childrenshc.org http://www.parknicollet.com http://www.allina.com
Park Nicollet Health Services
CONTACT: Mark Heymans of Children’s, +1-612-813-6604,+1-651-238-7829 (cell); or Jeremiah Whitten of Park Nicollet,+1-952-993-6057, +1-952-231-5028 (pager); or Gloria O’Connell of Allina,+1-763-236-3777, +1-612-654-8769 (pager)
