Board OKs Sale Of Multi-Township EMS To Kosciusko Hospital
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Staff Report-
The transaction is slated to be complete later this year, according to an announcement Tuesday from KCH. The agreement follows months of negotiations between the M-TEMS board, KCH and the hospital’s parent company, Community Health Systems.
The new service will see no changes in personnel or ambulance staffing levels, and current Chief Scott Sigerfoos will maintain leadership, according to information from M-TEMS and KCH. The new service is also expected to save 25 percent for towns that contract with it, M-TEMS said in a letter sent to those towns earlier this month.
Members of the Multi-Township EMS staff will be rehired in their same positions to provide service to the approximately 100,000 residents in the service area in and around Kosciusko County, states the KCH announcement.
“This is a win-win for M-TEMS and the community as this affiliation supports an already established quality local EMS,” M-TEMS Board President Gary Sponseller is quoted in the release as saying. “Additionally, an endowment fund totaling approximately $1 million will be set up and utilized at the discretion of the M-TEMS Board of Directors to support ongoing community program needs.”
The acquisition was considered because of “an overall trend downward” financially that M-TEMS has experienced in recent years, according to the letter.
“EMS agencies across the nation are locking arms with larger organizations to help shield and protect them (from) the volatility of our current healthcare market,” the letter states. “Partnering with a larger organization brings us many benefits. We are able to tap into the large purchasing power of a bigger agency for starters. This positively affects every aspect of our operations. Benefits become cheaper, supplies become cheaper, services become cheaper, the list goes on and on.”
Sigerfoos said in the KCH announcement that “This merger was thoughtfully considered by the Multi-Township EMS board and staff. Affiliation with KCH will allow EMS services to continue to flourish while providing quality emergency medical response services to the area.”
Patient choice in where to seek emergency care will remain in place, the release states. Critical patients will be taken to the closest appropriate emergency department while honoring patient preference.
“For over 30 years, Kosciusko Community Hospital has worked in tandem with Multi-Township EMS on developing pre-hospital life-saving protocols. As affiliate organizations we can create an even better coordination of care,” said KCH CEO Kirk Ray in the announcement.
Multi Township EMS has “provided timely, quality service to Kosciusko County since 1977,” the release also states, as well as educational programs for area EMS services and fire and police departments. CPR classes and other outreach programs for the public, including the One Heart program, will continue.[[In-content Ad]]
The transaction is slated to be complete later this year, according to an announcement Tuesday from KCH. The agreement follows months of negotiations between the M-TEMS board, KCH and the hospital’s parent company, Community Health Systems.
The new service will see no changes in personnel or ambulance staffing levels, and current Chief Scott Sigerfoos will maintain leadership, according to information from M-TEMS and KCH. The new service is also expected to save 25 percent for towns that contract with it, M-TEMS said in a letter sent to those towns earlier this month.
Members of the Multi-Township EMS staff will be rehired in their same positions to provide service to the approximately 100,000 residents in the service area in and around Kosciusko County, states the KCH announcement.
“This is a win-win for M-TEMS and the community as this affiliation supports an already established quality local EMS,” M-TEMS Board President Gary Sponseller is quoted in the release as saying. “Additionally, an endowment fund totaling approximately $1 million will be set up and utilized at the discretion of the M-TEMS Board of Directors to support ongoing community program needs.”
The acquisition was considered because of “an overall trend downward” financially that M-TEMS has experienced in recent years, according to the letter.
“EMS agencies across the nation are locking arms with larger organizations to help shield and protect them (from) the volatility of our current healthcare market,” the letter states. “Partnering with a larger organization brings us many benefits. We are able to tap into the large purchasing power of a bigger agency for starters. This positively affects every aspect of our operations. Benefits become cheaper, supplies become cheaper, services become cheaper, the list goes on and on.”
Sigerfoos said in the KCH announcement that “This merger was thoughtfully considered by the Multi-Township EMS board and staff. Affiliation with KCH will allow EMS services to continue to flourish while providing quality emergency medical response services to the area.”
Patient choice in where to seek emergency care will remain in place, the release states. Critical patients will be taken to the closest appropriate emergency department while honoring patient preference.
“For over 30 years, Kosciusko Community Hospital has worked in tandem with Multi-Township EMS on developing pre-hospital life-saving protocols. As affiliate organizations we can create an even better coordination of care,” said KCH CEO Kirk Ray in the announcement.
Multi Township EMS has “provided timely, quality service to Kosciusko County since 1977,” the release also states, as well as educational programs for area EMS services and fire and police departments. CPR classes and other outreach programs for the public, including the One Heart program, will continue.[[In-content Ad]]
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