HomeMy Public PortalAboutPayette Lakes Medical ClinicThe Star-News 5/29/2008
New hospital clinic
opens more space,
consolidates doctors
BY LUCIA V KNUDSON
The Star -News
The new medical clinic that
opened in McCall on Tuesday
promises more convenience for
internal medicine patients as
well as expanding space for fam-
ily care physicians.
McCall Medical Clinics has
5,400 square feet of space and is
adjacent to Payette Lakes Medical
Clinic on Forest Street across the
parking lot from McCall Memo-
rial Hospital.
The clinic is owned by the
hospital, which has relocated its
internal medicine department to
the buildingfrom the Long Valley
Medical Clinic.
The hospital also leases space
in the building to the privately
owned Payette Lakes Medical
Clinic for three of its family
practice doctors.
"Patients can see their inter-
nal medicine physician and get
lab work done atone location and
visit, "hospital spokesman Laura
Paul said.
The new building features:
• 12 patient exam rooms.
• Seven physician offices.
• One medical procedures
room.
• Two laboratories
• One reception area for inter-
nal medicine patients.
Three family medicine physi-
cians plus their assistants staff
the building in addition to two
internal medicine physicians
plus their attending staff. Three
mid- levelproviders also will work
in the new clinic. Later this sum-
mer, a general surgeon will also
see patients there.
Family practice doctors lo-
cated at the new building are
Sarah Curtin, Caitlin Gustafson
and Terri Mucha.
Internal medicine doctors are
David Burica and Marcia Witte,
and the mid -level providers are
Physicians assistants Dan Hyde,
Christine Hall and Jackie Tur-
nipseed- Aymon.
The total cost of the building,
which includes construction,
land, medical equipment, furni-
ture and landscaping, was about
$2 million.
Patients will be better served
because of extra exam rooms
which relieve congestion and
provide greater flexibility in
scheduling visiting specialty
doctors, Paul said.
"There are other benefits
to the hospital that indirectly
support patient care: cleaning,
maintaining and supplying
a centralized location, and
snow removal, IT support for
example — are more efficient,"
she said.
Sa,k 64,01-4
s /�/b g
Star -News Photo by Lucia V. Knudson
Mary Benson of McCall, left, chats with physician assistant Jackie
Turnipseed -Aymon at the new McCall Medical Clinics building.
The Star-News 5/18/2009
Medical clinic wants
St. Luke's to run
business operations
BY TOM GROTE
The Star -News
Payette Lakes Medical Clinic is talking to St. Luke's
Regional Medical Center about using the services of
St. Luke's, the .clinic's president said Monday.
Preliminary talks are underway to see how St.
Luke's can help streamline patient billing, medical
record- keeping and employee management, clinic
president Dr. Dan Ostermiller said.
Payette Lakes Medical Clinic is located across
the parking lot from McCall Memorial Hospital. The
clinic is a private corporation, but has had a contract
with McCall Memorial for the last 12 years to provide
management services.
"We want to focus more on patient care and less
on running the business," Ostermiller said.
There are services that could be provided more
efficiently by St. Luke's, and the larger hospital is
better equipped to keep up with the constant updates
in health -care regulations, he said.
See CLINIC, Page A -8
Clinic
(Continued from Pag e A-1)
"When 1 came here 22 years
ago, billing was easier," Oster-
miller said. "Now you can't
keep up with the changes."
The talks between
Luke's and the clinic could
take six months or mo
the extent. of the pot ential
partnership is not yet k
he said.
There are nine physicians,
one physician's assista nt and
two nurse practitioners w ho
work at the clinic.
PLMC also operates satel-
lite clinics in New Meadows
and Riggins. The Donnelly
clinic, operated jointly with
hospital, closed on May 1, and
the PLMC's Council satellite
clinic will close May 31.
St. The various clinics saw
21,070 patients in 2008 com-
re, and pared to 21,153 patients in
2007.
known,
a
The partnership that owns
the business side of PLMC
includes Ostermiller and Drs.
Jim Dardis, Scott Harris Dave
Hall and Julie Welty.
(Continued from Pag e A-1)
"When 1 came here 22 years
ago, billing was easier," Oster-
miller said. "Now you can't
keep up with the changes."
The talks between
Luke's and the clinic could
take six months or mo
the extent. of the pot ential
partnership is not yet k
he said.
There are nine physicians,
one physician's assista nt and
two nurse practitioners w ho
work at the clinic.
PLMC also operates satel-
lite clinics in New Meadows
and Riggins. The Donnelly
clinic, operated jointly with
hospital, closed on May 1, and
the PLMC's Council satellite
clinic will close May 31.
St. The various clinics saw
21,070 patients in 2008 com-
re, and pared to 21,153 patients in
2007.
known,
a
The Star-News 11/25/2009
Payette Lakes
Medical Clinic
to merge with
St. Luke's
Patients will see no difference
in care after Jan. l changeover
BY TOM GROTE
The Star -News
Payette Lakes Medical Clinic in McCall will become
part of St. Luke's Health System, based in Boise, start-
ing Jan. 1.
The nine doctors and two dozen other staffers who work
at the clinic will become employees of St. Luke's, adding
to more than 300 other physicians in the region who are
partners with St. Luke's, a news release said.
The motivation for the merger
is to provide patients the benefits "our
of the business office of St. Luke's
and to take business decisions off patients can
the doctors, said Dr. Terri Mucha,
the clinic's medical director. continue .
"We will continue beingthe same
physicians providingthe same qual to expect
ity care for our patients," Mucha the same
said. "The foremost consideration
in this change of ownership was care they
how we can improve patient access
while ensuring an efficient work always have
environment for physicians."
The clinic will continue ac- received."
cepting the insurance providers
it currently accepts, and fees for — Dr. Jim
services will not increase as a result
of the transition, she said. Dardis
"We are pleased to partner witIMM, " said John
Kee, St. Luke's vice president of physician services. "It
is a clinic distinguished by its devotion to the community,
the quality of the care provided there and its excellent
physicians."
The nine physicians working at the clinic will continue
staffingthe emergency room at McCall Memorial Hospital
after the merger is completed Jan. 1.
Also, Meadows Valley Medical Clinic in New Meadows
and Salmon River Medical Clinic in Riggins, which are
operated by Payette Lakes, will also become St. Luke's
physician clinics.
"Our patients can continue to expect the same care they
always have received, that has been and will continue to be
our commitment to them," said Dr. Jim Dardis, a family
practice physician at the clinic.
��L&44
IIl9e /f,
Payette Lakes Medical Clinic
to merge with St. Luke's
(Continued from Page A -1)
The clinic is located
across the parking lot from
the hospital on Park Street.
The building was opened in
2000 when the clinic moved
across the street from its
previous quarters which is
now known as the Allen-
Nokes Center.
The hospital purchased
the previous clinic building
and renovated it to house var-
ious offices and services.
The current clinic build-
ing is owned by Dardis, Dr.
Dave Hall, Dr. Scott Harris
andDr. Dan Ostermiller. The
four will lease the building to
St. Luke's.
The clinic saw 21,070 pa-
tients in 2008 compared with
19,458 patients in 2000.
Referrals will continue to
be sent to the most appropri-
ate specialist and will not be
affected by the merger with
St. Luke's, Mucha said.
St. Luke's also has a man-
agement agreement with
McCall Memorial Hospital.
As part of that agreement,
St. Luke's employs hospital
CEO Lee Rhodes and pro-
vides a variety of services
to the hospital.
Officials of St. Luke's and
the McCall hospital have
begun formal meetings on
expanding the partnership,
but no agreement has been
reached.