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Leveraging our Health System’s Strengths to Benefit Patients
William D. Petasnick
President and CEO, Froedtert Hospital
 Our health system, Froedtert & Community Health, was formed based on a shared commitment to a community academic partnership. We believed that connecting community and academic providers created a unique opportunity to leverage the organizations’ respective strengths for the benefit of our patients and the communities we serve.
In the early stages, we focused on delivering most care close to home with links to the academic medical center for specialty care when needed, which we continue to do.
We have come a long way since we started. St. Joseph’s Hospital in West Bend and the West Bend Clinic have joined our system, expanding our geographic reach with locations in Washington County. We have established Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin clinics in communities including Brookfield, Menomonee Falls, Wauwatosa, Waukesha and West Allis.
We are now building on this vision through the establishment of a regional cancer network. Over the past three years, the number of cancer patients seen by Medical College physicians has grown by 35 percent. With more patients choosing Froedtert & The Medical College, we established the Cancer Network to enhance access to specialists in the community hospital setting.
Community Memorial Hospital in Menomonee Falls and St. Joseph’s Hospital are participating in the Network. At Community Memorial, Medical College medical oncologists, gynecologic oncologists and neuro-oncologists join Medical College radiation oncologists, who have practiced there since 1993. Expanded services are also available in urologic oncology. In West Bend, patients can access Medical College specialists in radiation oncology, gynecologic oncology, urologic oncology and plastic surgery. In addition, Medical College physicians work collaboratively with community physicians to provide continuity of care for patients.
The network also will bring cancer patients streamlined access to clinical trials, second opinions and an array of supportive services.
More initiatives to integrate care and improve access will follow, and we’ll continue to leverage our unique strengths for the benefit of all our patients and our community, as we have done for 30 years.
Source: Froedtert Today Date: September 2010 |
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