hospital
CHRISTUS Health, an international, faith-based, not-for-profit health system headquartered in Irving, Texas announced today that it has finalized an agreement with The Hopkins County Hospital District (Hopkins) for the ongoing management and operation of the hospital. The agreement could take effect as early as July1.
The joining of the two prestigious health care organizations formed a new organization called CHRISTUS Hopkins Health Alliance (CHHA), and means CHRISTUS Health will now own 51 percent of CHHA and Hopkins will own the other 49 percent. The hospital’s name will change to CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital-Sulphur Springs and the clinics will change to CHRISTUS Trinity Clinic-Sulphur Springs and CHRISTUS Trinity Clinic-Emory.
For Hopkins CEO Michael McAndrew there haven’t been many days in the last 14 years that have been as significant as this day. But, as he explains there have been some big ones.
“We’ve watched a 3-story medical office building rise out of the ground and partnered to create an Acute Rehab Unit as well as a Wound Care Center. We’ve seen growth in surgical specialties. We partnered to provide state-of-the-art cardiac services. We formed Memorial Clinic starting with one provider and are now 30 strong. We invested millions in our facilities and have recently become a residency training site for Family Medicine,” said McAndrew. “Even with all of these wonderful things we knew that if we didn’t find a strong partner we would not be able to continue our mission. After a lengthy process the Board has signed a joint venture agreement with CHRISTUS Health. It will be an exciting new beginning, rich with promise. It will ensure our viability, irrespective of the monumental changes in healthcare, for generations to come.”
“Our mission for the last 150 years has been to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ, and with the finalization of this agreement, we are continuing to build upon and strengthen our mission for years to come,” said Ernie Sadau, president and Chief Executive Officer for CHRISTUS Health. “The formation of CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Health System which we announced earlier this month in Tyler means expanded access to award–winning, quality care. We’re so very fortunate to have CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances-Sulphur Springs and clinics become part of the CHRISTUS family.”
Those sentiments were echoed by Hopkins Board Members.
“This is really about future generations and how we can serve their health care needs,” said Tim Kelty, Hopkins Board Chair. “In today’s health care environment, rural health care organizations need a partner in order to continue to meet the health care needs of their community,” he said. “As chairman of the board I can tell you we are extremely excited about the future of CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital – Sulphur Springs and CHRISTUS Trinity Clinic – Sulphur Springs and Emory. There are great things in store for our hospital, clinic, employees and community. I want to personally thank each board member and the administrative team for their hard work and dedication throughout this process. I would also like to thank each employee for their continued support and for their hard work and dedication to our patients.
We look forward to this journey with CHRISTUS Health,” he said.
“I am excited about our joint venture with CHRISTUS Health. I know they will be a good fit with our hospital and community,” said Hopkins Board Member Dan Roper, Jr., DDS. “I also feel that the quality of health care that our hospital has provided for the past 68 years will be greatly enhanced by their caring attitude and vast resources.”
“We decided if we were going to survive and prosper in this new health care era, we must merge with a larger organization,” explained Hopkins Board Member Joe Bob Burgin. “After months of evaluation, we unanimously agreed CHRISTUS Health was the one for Hopkins and our community. CHRISTUS has shown they want to have a strong presence in East Texas, with hospitals in Texarkana, Atlanta, Tyler and now Hopkins in Sulphur Springs and very possibly more to come. CHRISTUS has a lot of the same values and philosophies that Hopkins has. I truly believe through CHRISTUS Health, Hopkins will become stronger and better as we become CHRISTUS-Trinity Mother Frances – Sulphur Springs. I hope the entire community will join us in celebrating this new and better health care endeavor for all the people of our health care area.”
The agreement means that Mother Frances Hospital– Sulphur Springs and the CHRISTUS Trinity Clinics are now Catholic and operated under the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, a body of teachings and ethical principles concerning social justice and health care ethics.
For more information about CHRISTUS Health, and their health care offerings, visit http://www.christushealth.org/.
