Talking Points about the BCHS/Bronson

June 14, 2011

Since announcing plans in December to form a new regional healthcare system, Battle Creek Health System (BCHS) and Bronson have been working diligently to meet all of the legal and regulatory requirements necessary to move forward with their planned partnership.

A definitive agreement was signed on June 10 and, assuming no unforeseen difficulties, BCHS and Bronson will come together as one healthcare system effective July 1, 2011.

The board of directors for the Bronson system will expand to include six new members who have served in a governance capacity at BCHS. This board will oversee all healthcare services in the region.

Denise Brooks-Williams has been selected to serve as CEO of Bronson Battle Creek. She will be part of Bronson’s executive team and report to Bronson president & CEO Frank Sardone.

The vision for the new partnership is to create a coordinated, regional healthcare system that delivers optimal care for patients throughout southwest Michigan.

Key goals driving the partnership are to provide the ‘right care in the right place at the right time’ and maximize the clinical strengths of each entity.

Governance and administration are committed to preserving, protecting and growing services at Bronson Battle Creek.

This does not mean that everything will change on day one. The transition will be gradual.

Planning over the next 6 to 12 months will set the tone for BBC’s operational direction.

Some of the benefits Bronson and BBC hope to achieve through this new partnership include:

meeting patients’ needs better by providing the ‘right care in the right place at the right time;
being able treat patients according to the same established best practices across the region, resulting in more consistent quality of care and better outcomes;
improving hospital capacity due to more effective patient placement between secondary and tertiary hospitals;
achieving higher efficiency through standardized care and reduced duplication of services;
stronger recruitment and retention of sub-specialists due to broader referral population; and
improved ability to impact community health improvement across a broad region

The emphasis is going to be on partnering — partnering with services, with our physicians, and in our communities so we can better coordinate care across the region.

Our intent is to strengthen the services and quality of care we have, as well as do our best to contribute to the overall health, wellbeing and economic vitality of the entire region.