News Archive

Upcoming Community Meetings re: University of Colorado Health (Feb. 2012)

Learn more about the new University of Colorado Health system at one of these upcoming meetings in northern Colorado:

Tues., Feb. 7, 5:30 p.m., in the Longs Peak meeting room at the Medical Center of the Rockies, Loveland.
Wed., Feb. 8, 5:30 p.m., in the Cafe F meeting room at Poudre Valley Hospital, Fort Collins.
Thur., Feb. 9, 5:30 p.m., in MCR's Longs Peak meeting room.
Fri., Feb. 10, 5:30 p.m., in PVH's Cafe F meeting room.
Mon., Feb. 13, 5:30 p.m., at the Greeley Medical Center, 1900 16th Street, Greeley.

Additional information is available on the University of Colorado Health website at universityofcoloradohealth.org

Leading Hospitals Form University of Colorado Health (Jan. 2012)

Poudre Valley Health System (PVHS) and the University of Colorado Hospital (UCH) have finalized a joint operating agreement that creates a health system its leaders say will widen health care services and provide unparalleled patient care in the Rocky Mountain region.

Called University of Colorado Health, the new system combines one of the top-performing community health systems in the nation with the highest-ranked academic medical center in quality in the country. With annual net revenue of $1.5 billion, it will be one of the region's largest locally-owned health systems and, with nearly 10,000 employees, one of Colorado's largest employers.

"We're excited about this partnership because it's all about improving the quality of care for our patients," said Rulon Stacey, president and CEO of Poudre Valley Health System.

The new system combines the best in academic medicine with the best in community medicine, said Bruce Schroffel, president and CEO of University of Colorado Hospital. "This agreement brings two of the finest healthcare organizations in the West together into a significant and novel partnership that we believe could be an example for other independent hospitals to follow," said Schroffel.

Schroffel added that the system may get larger over time, providing more Coloradans with even greater access to the most innovative medicine available. "We're already negotiating with the Colorado Springs City Council to allow us to lease and operate Memorial Health System there," said Schroffel. "If we reach an agreement, we will have a system that stretches along the Front Range. Poudre Valley would be its northern hub, Memorial its southern hub, with the University of Colorado Hospital at its central geographic and academic core in the Denver metro area."

University of Colorado Health would continue UCH's historic role of providing advanced and complex care at the Anschutz Medical Campus headquarters and of offering specialty and family care throughout the metropolitan area. Poudre Valley Health System has two acute care hospitals in Poudre Valley Hospital and Medical Center of the Rockies, as well as a wide network of primary care and specialty clinics in northern Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska.

UCH will continue its close relationship with the University of Colorado School of Medicine - all its attending physicians are on the medical school's faculty - and help extend the medical school's research and residency programs through the new system to the entire region. In addition, UCH's close collaboration with the other health sciences schools on the Anschutz Medical Campus will continue.

"We expect to contribute not only to the University of Colorado's academic programs, but also to expanding the accessibility, quality, cost-effectiveness, clinical outcomes and patient-responsiveness of care to communities throughout Colorado and the region," said Stacey. "Patients in northern Colorado can look forward to greater access to clinical trials which are at the forefront of new medicine."

The agreement, which has been approved by both existing systems and their partners, establishes a governing board of 11 directors and an executive team to guide the new organization.

Bruce Schroffel was named president of University of Colorado Health as well as chairman of the board of directors. Rulon Stacey will serve as CEO of the University of Colorado Health.

Health District Board of Directors Gives Provisional Approval to Amended Operating Lease With PVHS (Jan. 2012)

The board of directors of the Health District of Northern Larimer County voted to provisionally approve amendments to the operating lease under which Poudre Valley Health System (PVHS) operates the Health District-owned Poudre Valley Hospital. The board's action was in response to a request by PVHS for changes required to enable a joint operating agreement under which PVHS and University of Colorado Hospital (UCH) would join to create a new regional health system to be operated by a new joint operating company.

The Health District leases Poudre Valley Hospital and certain other assets to PVHS, which has operated them under terms of a 50-year operating lease signed by the two organizations in 1994. The amendments to the current operating lease are set forth in a proposed Operating Lease Amendment and Consent Agreement (the lease amendment and consent), which will be considered for final approval by the Health District board following a period for public comment and a public hearing.

The terms of the lease amendment and consent would provide for:

an extension of the term of the operating lease by 18 years, from 2044 to 2062;
commitments by the new health system and PVHS to continue providing adequate levels of high-quality healthcare services to the local community (including to those unable to afford the full cost of care) through local hospitals and other facilities;
flexibility for the new health system to seek financing on more favorable terms, including to provide for future capital needs of PVHS; and
an adjustment of the present lease payment that was originally established in 1994.

The Health District board has determined that these changes are in the best interests of the local community and that the proposal by PVHS to join with UCH in a larger, regional health system will better position PVHS for future success amid upcoming changes that will have major effects on the healthcare industry. These include an aging population, prospective changes in reimbursement for healthcare services, the movement toward increasingly integrated care, and demands and requirements for sophisticated information technology systems and other technological advances, as well as other challenges.

"We support the joint operating agreement between PVHS and UCH and believe that the creation of a larger, but still nonprofit, health system will enable PVHS to meet the challenges of the future and continue providing comprehensive, high-quality and cost-effective care for our community. PVHS and University Hospital are both strong, top-quality health systems with excellent records, and the combination will give our community new opportunities, including more immediate access to the latest medical research," said Celeste Kling, president of the Health District board of directors.

In evaluating the request for changes to the operating lease, the Health District board's top priority was to ensure that the historic purposes of the PVHS healthcare system would be maintained and that PVHS and the new health system were committed to continuing a broad range of high-quality healthcare services to meet the current and future needs of the residents of the communities presently served by PVHS.

The proposed lease amendment and consent provides that critical local facilities such as Poudre Valley Hospital, Medical Center of the Rockies and Harmony Campus will not be closed without consent of the Health District board unless appropriate substitutes are provided. At the end of the term of the operating lease in 2062, the hospitals and other healthcare facilities serving the local communities, as well as other assets, would be returned to the Health District or another operator designated by the Health District, unless the operating lease is renegotiated and extended.

The Health District board also considered the significant increases in capital requirements for funding construction and improvements of the hospitals and other healthcare facilities since the original operating lease was signed in 1994, as well as the future need for access to capital on favorable credit terms. The joint operating agreement with UCH would enhance PVHS access to such funding through combined financings under the umbrella of the new, larger health system. To enable such combined financing by the new health system, the Health District board agreed to certain changes in the present operating lease. Requirements that the Health District give prior approval for the issuance of bonded debt that involves pledges of PVHS revenue would be reduced so long as the new health system meets certain guidelines, including credit quality standards.

The board also revisited the annual lease payment from PVHS to the Health District. At the time of the original agreement, the annual lease payment was $300,000, with no provision for adjustment over time. PVHS also agreed to pay additional amounts sufficient to retire the Health District's existing bonded indebtedness, which had funded past hospital expansions. The debt was repaid in full in 2004. After evaluating the legal, financial and practical implications of the proposed lease modification, the board determined that the annual lease payment should be $916,000 beginning in 2012, with an annual increase of three percent thereafter. The board's decision took into account numerous factors. It balanced a reasonable return for the community for the 18-year lease extension, the pledge of PVHS revenues as security for UCH debt, and the transition of control from a local to a regional system, with such factors as past and expected future expansions and improvements to healthcare facilities, and commitments by the new healthcare system to maintain robust, high-quality healthcare services for local communities, including for individuals unable to afford the full cost of care.

"The board believes that the adjustment to the lease rate is in the best interests of the community and will ensure that a reasonable rate will be paid under the 50-year operating lease as amended," said Kling.

The new combined health system would have its own board of directors, which would exercise authority over the entire system. PVHS also would retain a local board of directors, which would have some authority and would continue to include a liaison member from the Health District board.

Before taking final action with respect to the proposed Operating Lease Amendment and Consent Agreement, the Health District board of directors will hold a public hearing Thursday, Feb. 16 at 7 p.m., at the Hilton Fort Collins, 425 W. Prospect Ave. The board also welcomes written public comment. The deadline for submitting written comment is Wednesday, Feb. 22. Comments can be sent to board@healthdistrict.org or by mail at Board of Directors, Health District of Northern Larimer County, 120 Bristlecone Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80524.

The Health District board will give final consideration to the lease revisions at its next regular meeting Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 5:30 p.m., at the Health District, 120 Bristlecone Drive, Fort Collins.

The Health District is a public agency that provides dental, mental health, prescription assistance and health promotion services to the residents of northern Larimer County, in addition to its duties with respect to PVHS.

PVHS to Begin Air Ambulance Service in Mid-March (Jan. 2012)

Poudre Valley Health System announced that it plans to offer an air ambulance program from Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland beginning mid-March. The program would feature a B3 helicopter designed to safely transfer patients in high-altitude areas.

"We are proud to bring to the community an air ambulance service built around three pillars of excellence: safety, quality and rapid transport," said Dr. Timothy Hutchison, medical director of the PVHS air ambulance program. Dr. Hutchison is also an ER physician with more than 23 years of experience in medical air transport, most recently at the Greeley-based North Colorado Med Evac. "Achieving positive patient outcomes is the primary focus of our new program," he said. "With quality medical teams on board, helicopters play a pivotal role in getting patients with life-threatening conditions to the care they need as quickly as possible."

The PVHS aircraft would be equipped with the latest medical transport technology available to support optimal on-flight treatment. Its home base would be Medical Center of the Rockies, which features two landing pads, one on the rooftop and one at ground level. The PVHS flight crews would include experienced nurses and paramedics skilled in high-level trauma and advanced cardiac and critical care.

The program would serve the medical transport needs of northern Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska. Program administrators are currently discussing the name of the new program and finalizing contracts.

Community School Wellness Roundtable (Jan. 2012)

The Coalition for Activity and Nutrition to Defeat Obesity and Healthy Kids Club, both Poudre Valley Health System programs, are partnering with Colorado's Action for Healthy Kids to offer the first northern Colorado Regional Parent School Wellness Roundtable.

The event will be held at the Windsor Recreation Center, 250 11th St. in Windsor, from 5:00-7:30pm on January 25. Childcare is available for children ages 5-12. Parents can register online at www.actionforhealthykids.org/colorado or call (970) 495-7523 for more information.

The Roundtable will provide parents and community members from Poudre, Thompson, Windsor, and Greeley school districts the opportunity to learn more about school wellness initiatives to create a healthier school environment. Participants will also be able to network and share challenges and successes they have had impacting physical activity and nutrition in their homes and children's schools.

CanDo and Healthy Kids Club have been working in northern Colorado schools for more than a decade to promote healthy eating and physical activity. Action for Healthy Kids is a national coalition focused on mobilizing parents and communities to influence schools around health and wellness for children and recognizing the link between health and academics.