VHA, Trammell Crow sign real estate services agreement
Irving, Texas-based VHA Inc., and Trammell Crow Healthcare Services, the healthcare business unit of Trammell Crow Co., located in Irving, Texas, signed a national real estate services agreement. Trammell Crow Healthcare Services will provide solutions to complex real estate functions facing VHA member facilities. Services are to include clinical facilities management; clinical project management; medical office building development, leasing and management; development services of transaction management services.
HCA builds new hospital
Nashville-based HCA Inc. broke ground in February 2006 on a $172 million, 420,000-square-foot replacement hospital that will consolidate Southwest Florida Regional Medical Center and Gulf Coast Hospital, both of Ft. Myers, Fla. The hospital will be located on 45 acres on the Gulf Coast Hospital campus at the corner of Daniels and Metro parkways. Initial construction will relocate the parking area before construction on the new building can begin. The hospital will feature 349 beds in private rooms, a new 43-bed ER, 28 exam rooms, 10 observation rooms and 22 ORs. The new ER will be able to accommodate over 92,000 patients per year. The new, as-yet-unnamed hospital is expected to open in 2008.
UNC Health plans to file CON for 68 beds
UNC Health Care System, based in Chapel Hill, N.C., plans to file a CON with the state division of facility services to add 68 acute-care beds. According to a formula calculated by the state, UNC, which operates at a bed capacity of 85 percent, has shown a need for additional beds within its service area that also includes Caswell and Orange counties. The state deems that hospitals that operate over 75 percent bed capacity necessitate the need for additional beds. Because the project is in the early planning stages, financial details or a timeframe have not yet been determined. UNC Hospitals is currently adding 43 new patient beds.
Premier announces medical imaging group buy
San Diego-based Premier Inc. announced a special group-buy for Siemens Medical Solutions of Malvern, Pa., medical imaging systems, as well as associated contrast media injectors from Mallinckrodt Inc. of Hazelwood, Mo., and Medrad Inc. of Indianola, Pa. The event, which runs through June 30, 2006, offers savings opportunities to members who are planning to add to or enhance their medical imaging capabilities. All members of Premier are eligible to participate. Members may take delivery any time from March 1, 2006 through June 30, 2008
Tenet Healthcare announces executive changes
Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare Corp. announced executive changes at Doctors Hospital of Manteca, Calif., and Doctors Medical Center, of Modesto, Calif. Katherine Madeiros, CEO of Doctors Manteca and interim CEO of Doctors Modesto, became the new CEO of Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital, of Grass Valley, Calif., effective March 1, 2006. She was replaced at Doctors Modesto by Rick Lyons on an interim basis. Lyons is currently CEO of Twin Cities Community Hospital, of Templeton, Calif., and will temporarily serve both facilities. Sean Fowler, former COO of Memorial Medical Center-Baptist Campus, located in New Orleans, will serve as interim CEO of Doctors Manteca. Tenet continues a national recruitment campaign to find a CEO for the 398-bed Doctors Modesto.
Senior Executive at Seton retires
Austin, Texas-based Seton Healthcare Network announced that executive VP and COO Pat Hayes will retire on July 1, 2006. She will stay on as a consultant for organizational development and executive coaching. On March 1, 2006, Jesus Garza took over as executive VP and COO. He previously served as president and CEO for four hospitals: Brackenridge Hospital; Seton Shoal Creek Hospital both of Austin, Texas; Seton Edgar B Davis Memorial Hospital of Luling, Texas; and Seton Highland Lakes Hospital of Burnet, Texas.
Sutter Health devotes more money to outpatient care
Patrick Fry, new CEO of Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health, is spearheading a three-year plan to cut costs in certain areas, but also increase spending on outpatient care. Sutter added $800 million to its budget for outpatient projects over the next decade, boosting the total to $2.1 billion. By contrast, inpatient-related layoffs are likely; some previously announced seismic-related hospital construction projects will be scaled back. Sutter’s capital budget, which was about $3.5 billion in 2002, has doubled due to delays and increased construction costs. Sutter Health told board members of Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital, of Auburn, Calif., that they should retrofit the old hospital instead of building a new one, and spend money on an outpatient surgery center across the street. Sutter is spending $10 million at Auburn on the ER and ambulatory surgery center expansion project, as well as on a new women’s imaging center, family birthing center and cardiac catheterization lab. In addition, Sutter shut down its money-losing occupational health subsidiary in December 2005, laying off 75 workers.
LifePoint curtails acquisitions
LifePoint Hospitals Inc. of Brentwood, Tenn., announced plans to increase its capital expenditures on new services and physician recruitment, and curtail its spending on hospital acquisitions. The system plans between $180 million and $210 million in capital spending in 2006, largely to reconfigure some hospitals and restructure existing surgical capacity. LifePoint’s only announced purchase for 2006 is a $285 million acquisition of five hospitals from Nashville-based HCA Inc., worth about $400 million in revenue. The company has been selling off assets to deleverage, including four deals, the details of which were not disclosed, that should be completed in the first quarter.
McKesson announces management changes
San Francisco-based McKesson Corp. announced a series of management changes in its Pharmaceutical Solutions and Medical-Surgical Solutions divisions reporting to Paul Julian, executive VP and group president. Effective April 1, 2006, the start of McKesson’s new fiscal year, these executives will have new roles: John Figueroa, becomes president, U.S. Pharmaceutical Distribution; Gary Muensterman becomes senior VP, corporate strategy and business development, reporting to Marc Owen, executive VP, corporate strategy and business development. Brian Tyler becomes president, McKesson Medical-Surgical and Patrick Blake becomes president, McKesson Specialty Pharmaceutical, McKesson Pharmacy Systems and Automated Prescription Systems.
Henry Ford Health awards contract to Ophthalmic Imaging Systems
Henry Ford Health System, based in Detroit, Mich., awarded a $548,000 contract to Sacramento, Calif.-based Ophthalmic Imaging Systems Inc. to upgrade the ophthalmology department in 15 of its locations to fully integrated digital systems. OIS will convert the film-based ophthalmic photography systems to digital imaging systems. This will include modifying existing stations and deploying new digital capture stations. OIS will also employ a completely automated interface system throughout the ophthalmic department allowing automated import of objects from a variety of existing and future ophthalmic diagnostic equipment, including OCT, HFA, ultrasound, topography, HRT, SLO, to a single platform.
APP receives two FDA approvals
Schaumberg, Ill.-based American Pharmaceutical Partners has received two approvals from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Octreotide Acetate Injection, single dose and multiple dose vials, the generic equivalent of Novartis Pharmaceutical’s Sandostatin Injection, the company said.
