CoxHealth and Houston-based Texas County Memorial Hospital have agreed to a formal affiliation in order to enhance services and care for residents of the Texas County region.
According to an April 10 CoxHealth news release, the move would allow the two Missouri organizations to collaborate clinically and partner to add and improve services to the area.
“We believe health care is best provided by local hospitals, with local governance, making decisions that are best for each individual community,” said Steve Edwards, CoxHealth president and CEO, in the release. “As the Springfield area’s only locally owned health system, we realize the value of partnering with like-minded organizations so that, working together, we can care for our neighbors across the Ozarks.”
The first move under the affiliation will be an expansion of the Texas County Memorial Hospital's surgery department and construction of a tornado safe room at the Houston hospital.
“We’re committed to bringing the necessary resources to the table to help TCMH get this project off the ground,” Edwards said. The surgery department renovation would double the size of two operating rooms and add new technology, an outpatient surgery room and seven private pre- and post-surgery bays within 6,091 square feet. The 4,000-square-foot Federal Emergency Management Agency approved tornado safe room, which would be built to withstand 250-mile-per-hour winds and shelter up to 462 patients, would serve daily as a waiting space, according to the release.
The partnership extends a working relationship the two hospitals have had since 1999. The release said CoxHealth has provided educational resources and access to family medicine residents to the Houston-based hospital and has provided specialized care for its patients when it wasn't available at the Texas County hospital.
“Texas County Memorial Hospital’s relationship with CoxHealth was forged many years ago, and the terms of our new agreement with Cox only strengthen the bond between both organizations,” Texas County Memorial Hospital CEO Wes Murray said in the release. “The board and administration at CoxHealth have an understanding of the importance of reaching out to rural communities."
Texas County Memorial Hospital, a 66-bed primary care facility, served more than 36,000 patients in 2011. It also operates clinics in Houston, Licking, Cabool, Summersville and Mountain Grove. CoxHealth serves more than 900,000 people annually in a 25-county service area in southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas, according to the release.
This installment of Springfield Business Journal’s Architects & Engineers Project Report showcases 26 endeavors by area design and engineering professionals.
