Adventist Midwest Health, including Hinsdale and La Grange Memorial hospitals, announced Friday an agreement to merge with Alexian Brothers Health System.
Adventist, which also operates Bolingbrook and Glen Oaks, will join with the five Alexian Brothers Hospitals that are part of St. Louis-based Ascension. The new health care system will serve a combined population of more than 3.8 million people.
The Joint Operating Company will allow both organizations to preserve their respective religious identities and mission priorities, and to integrate their operations while maintaining separate ownership of their assets. The affiliation will result in a diverse physician provider network, bringing together more than 3,000 physicians to offer better coordinated, more comprehensive care for patients, according to a news release from Adventist.
The partnership will be finalized by the end of January 2015, following review by appropriate regulatory bodies. The two health systems announced last June that they had signed a nonbinding letter of intent to form the Joint Operating Company.
“This is an important milestone in the process of completing the affiliation between our two health systems,” said Mark A. Frey, Alexian Brothers president and CEO. “At the same time, we will be taking another important step toward ensuring the long-term viability of the Alexian Brothers’ 800-year healing mission.”
David L. Crane, president and CEO of Adventist Midwest Health, said the affiliation will benefit the communities served by the health systems.
“This affiliation will bring to our communities a level of clinical integration for population health that has never existed, providing new health care options for our patients,” Crane said. “By joining together, we’ll offer new services and levels of care while reducing costs and enhancing value.”
Although the health systems represent different faith traditions, they share common missions and values, and this similarity is a key factor in their planned affiliation, Frey and Crane said.
“Both of our health systems are strong, faith-based organizations,” Frey said. “Our values and management style are similar, and we share a charitable mission and a commitment to providing high-quality, person-centered care. Our patients and communities can continue to expect the highest-quality care from Alexian Brothers and Adventist Midwest Health.”