[March 03, 2015]

Surgical Hospitalist Program Helps Hospital Buck the Trend and Increase Margins and Operating Success; Case Study Available

Bucking a national trend of hospitals struggling financially, NorthBay Medical Center's operating margins climbed from negative 2.1 percent in 2011 to 6.3 percent in 2013-an accomplishment lauded in Modern Healthcare¹ last year, which cited the key to the hospital's success as its ability to keep patients from leaving the county for specialty services, such as cardiovascular surgery. One very successful strategy the hospital implemented that helped enable it to increase its margins and operating success was a partnership with Surgical Affiliates Management Group, Inc., the leading surgical hospitalist organization in the United States. A new case study, "NorthBay Hospital Continues to Buck the Trend with Outstanding Results from Surgical Hospitalist Program," discussing the partnership and its accomplishments, is available at: http://www.samgi.com/our-results/.

"Our evolution to become the county's most advanced, full-service hospital, required a 24/7 surgical team that could provide the best care, when our patients needed it," said Deborah Sugiyama, president of NorthBay Healthcare Group. "Our partnership with Surgical Affiliates Management Group ensures we can provide the community with high-quality, reliable care."

Surgical Affiliates' solution produced clinical outcomes that raised hospital results in improved care, decreased length of stay and lowered costs. Since the Surgical Affiliates program was implemented, the number of surgeries performed has increased 3.5 percent from 1,133 in 2012 to 1,173 in 2014.

"Now, we have a 24/7 surgicalist team in the hospital to care for any emergency surgical needs," said Gary J. Passama, president and chief executive officer of NorthBay Healthcare System. "Our community knows that they can count on us-we're there in any emergency. The team collaborating with our hospital staff has improved patient care with the consistent use of surgical best practices, continuity of care, and communications wth patients, families, and the patient's primary care team."

"Hospitals everywhere are challenged to find a model that provides the highest level of surgical services to patients, especially on an emergency basis," said Leon J. Owens, M.D., FACS, CEO of Surgical Affiliates Management Group. "The surgical hospitalist model offers a solution to improve patient care and boost the hospital's performance at all levels."

NorthBay Medical Center and Surgical Affiliates also collaborated in expanding the hospital's trauma center to achieve a Level 2 designation.

"We sought Level 2 Verification by the American College of Surgeons for our trauma because we knew the NorthBay Medical Center would remain the county's busiest trauma center," said Passama. "We are centrally located and we have a comprehensive scope of services available only at NorthBay. By obtaining this certification, we wanted to assure the patients who look to us for care, including trauma care, that we've met the highest standards."

Underscoring the leading role that NorthBay Trauma Center plays in the community is a recent report by the Solano County Trauma Advisory Committee (TAC). It found that for the first three months of 2014, 62 percent of all trauma cases in the County were handled by NorthBay Medical Center.

To request a copy of the case study entitled "NorthBay Hospital Continues to Buck the Trend with Outstanding Results from Surgical Hospitalist Program," visit: http://www.samgi.com/our-results/.

About NorthBay Healthcare

NorthBay Healthcare opened its first hospital in 1960 and remains Solano County's only locally based, locally managed nonprofit healthcare organization. NorthBay Healthcare operates the 132-bed NorthBay Medical Center in Fairfield and the 50-bed NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville.

Both hospitals have emergency departments that are Chest Pain Centers, and both offer advanced primary stroke care. NorthBay Medical Center is the first hospital in Solano County to be designated for Level 2 trauma by the American College of Surgeons (ACS (News - Alert)). Both hospitals maintained accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.

NorthBay Medical Center is a center of excellence for maternal and child services and has been designated as a Baby-Friendly facility, one of only 200 in the country. NorthBay's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit provides the most sophisticated services for premature or ill newborns within 50 miles. It also hosts NorthBay Heart & Vascular Center, the only open-heart surgery center in the county.

NorthBay Healthcare also operates three Center for Primary Care facilities, two specialty services facilities, a Cancer Center, a Wound Center, a Pain Center and a Center for Women's Health.

About Surgical Affiliates Management Group, Inc.

Surgical Affiliates Management Group is the first and only surgical hospitalist company with published, proven results that its programs improve patient care, lower costs, reduce readmissions, and enhance hospital throughput and capacity. Surgical Affiliates' System of Care is a permanent solution to the challenge of providing 24/7 surgical care in the hospital and one that raises the level of hospital performance across the board, preparing these facilities for the world of pay-for-performance and accountable care models. The Surgical Affiliates' System of Care for general surgery, trauma, and orthopedics is currently in use in hospitals ranging from rural facilities to large community hospitals to multi-hospital systems. For more information, visit the Surgical Affiliates website at http://www.samgi.com.

¹ Kutscher, B. Hospital margins slump due to squeeze from volume, rates, investments, Modern Healthcare, June 23, 2014

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