Habersham Medical Center (HMC) and Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) will soon collaborate on emergency and inpatient services.
The Hospital Authority of Habersham County voted Tuesday night to approve a plan that will allow physicians groups that provide emergency and inpatient care at NGMC's Gainesville campus to perform the same services at Habersham Medical Center.
"We’re excited about this move to improve how both hospitals work together to care for our mutual patients in the right place at the right time," said Lynn Boggs, HMC’s chief executive officer, in a press statement released by NGMC. "This should assure anyone who currently travels to Gainesville for these services that they can receive high-quality care without leaving Habersham County."
NGMC will take over the services on July 1.
Both hospitals are in the process of developing a leadership structure for the new set-up.
"These physicians and leaders will work collaboratively with HMC’s current emergency and inpatient staff to share best practices that have been implemented at NGMC and help oversee other quality and care delivery measures," said NGMC President Louis Smith.
"We see this as the next step in making HMC stronger through the ongoing conversations we’ve enjoyed with NGMC,” said Boggs.
Press information stated both hospitals already participate in a “clinically integrated network” called HP2. The HP2 network is a group of insurers, hospitals and more than 480 providers from dozens of practices across northeast Georgia who work together to better coordinate patient care – with goals to improve quality, drive better outcomes and lower costs.
