Joint Clinical Operations
On June 25, 2014, National Jewish Health, Saint Joseph Hospital and its nonprofit parent, SCL Health, signed a joint operating agreement that creates a new, jointly managed entity to deliver highly coordinated patient care in both inpatient and outpatient settings. The agreement officially begins in August 2014.
For the most part, patients will notice few changes. National Jewish Health will continue to serve adult and pediatric patients primarily as outpatients on its main campus and its 24 other locations in Colorado. The Pediatric and Adult day programs will continue on the National Jewish Health main campus.
When patients require a hospital stay, they will be referred to Saint Joseph Hospital or another hospital when there is an insurance or payment requirement. Read more
When I got to town four years ago, I scheduled time to meet with all the other CEOs in town and so scheduled time to meet Michael and went to his office. I think just sort of hit it off from there and it didn't take very long to realize that our strengths and our weaknesses fit very nicely with each other.
I think both institutions are extremely good at what we do and the strengths are complementary which sometimes you don't have when folks come together. It was kind of a natural for both of our institutions and then when you start to look at our histories, we have strong traditions. 141 years of St. Joseph’s serving the community and 115 years of National Jewish serving the community. So there was a lot more in common than there was to separate us. No question our missions are the same. We're both teaching hospitals and National Jewish and St. Joseph’s have been serving the Denver community for a very long time.
I think one of the messages I’d want everyone to understand about this new partnership is the structure is a joint operating agreement. It's not a full asset merger; there is still National Jewish Health and there is still St. Joseph Hospital but wherever possible we're going to be doing things together.
I think the strengths of both institutions and the fact that we have teaching programs and that we're going to build a much larger network together than we could separately are very important to National Jewish. It's so unique in this in this relationship because we're going to be able to take advantage of their strengths almost immediately and they're going to be able to take advantage of our strengths almost immediately. We don't think our employees and associates will see much difference in change in what they do on a day-by-day basis. We think that there'll be a ton more opportunities for them but we're just starting and as we get more and more of our associates and medical staff together, I think the things that we will imagine over the next year two years three years is going to be truly exciting and a real game changer. For Saint Joe's building on what’s been said is one of the real keys for us is to build together this seamless ultimate patient care experience that'll go across the continuum of care and that we’ll be working very hard on over the next few years.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do my doctor appointments change?
No. You will see your doctor at the clinic and time that was confirmed when you made your appointment. If you would like to confirm you appointment information, please contact our scheduling department at 303.398.1355 or 1.877.CALL.NJH (877.225.5654).
Is National Jewish Health now part of the Kaiser Permanente network?
National Jewish Health is part of the Kaiser Permanente network for a limited number of specialized services for specific Kaiser plans. These services require an authorization or referral to receive care from National Jewish Health.
Will I now be referred to Saint Joseph Hospital when I need hospitalization?
Yes, over time, but we will still be able to send you to other hospitals if there is an insurance or payment requirement. Now that the Joint Operating Agreement is final, we are working with Saint Joseph Hospital to design care units that meet the complex needs of our patients. We anticipate opening some care units fairly quickly, while others will open when Saint Joseph Hospital opens its new facility in December. If you are one of the patients who is impacted by this change, we will let you know as more information becomes available.
What if my insurance requires me to be admitted to a hospital other than Saint Joseph Hospital?
National Jewish Health will still be able to send you to other hospitals if there is an insurance or payment requirement.
Will my National Jewish Health doctor take care of me when I am at Saint Joseph Hospital?
Yes, many of our National Jewish Health doctors will be seeing patients when they are hospitalized at Saint Joseph Hospital. Doctors must be credentialed at each hospital where they practice and will need to have that approval before seeing patients at Saint Joseph Hospital, but this process is underway now. One of the strengths of the agreement is the ability to offer highly coordinated, quality care. This means that in many cases, your National Jewish Health doctors will care for you while you are at Saint Joseph Hospital, with support from some of the best hospital-based physicians, nurses and technicians in Colorado.
Did National Jewish Health merge with (or was it bought by) Saint Joseph Hospital?
We have formed a collaborative relationship with Saint Joseph Hospital, however, it is not a merger, and neither company has been purchased by the other. National Jewish Health and Saint Joseph Hospital will jointly manage a newly formed clinical operation. The new entity is scheduled to begin operating in August.
Why did National Jewish Health and Saint Joseph Hospital choose to come together? What are the benefits?
Both of our organizations have been active in partnering with others when it is beneficial for our patients, our caregivers and the community. In this case, we saw two leading health care organizations in Colorado with complementary cultures, missions and dedication to excellence.
The strong outpatient approach of National Jewish Health complements the focused inpatient expertise of Saint Joseph Hospital, increasing our ability to manage patients along the full continuum of care. SCL Health offers access to high-value system services, and both institutions will share best practices. Both organizations also will benefit from each other’s complementary areas of clinical expertise.
Working together, we are expanding resources available to our patients and caregivers. We anticipate that patients will benefit from highly coordinated, quality care and the highest value in health care in both the inpatient and outpatient settings.
When will National Jewish Health Saint Joseph Hospital begin operations together?
The agreement officially begins in August 2014.