Hospitals explore partnership to strengthen care delivery regionally

CHELSEA, Mich. - The Board of Trustees of Chelsea Community Hospital (CCH) has made the decision to enter into a Letter of Intent to affiliate with Saint Joseph Mercy Health System (SJMHS), a member of Trinity Health. During the next three to four months, through a period of due diligence, the two organizations will carefully examine the feasibility of Chelsea Community Hospital becoming a member of Saint Joseph Mercy Health System.

'The Board of Trustees of Chelsea Community Hospital is committed to ensuring that Chelsea Community Hospital continues to be a strong, vibrant organization providing high quality health care to the communities we serve. To that end, I am very pleased to make this announcement,' says Kathleen Griffiths, President and CEO, Chelsea Community Hospital.

In the ever-evolving health care environment, it has become increasingly difficult for smaller independent hospitals to survive, and CCH is not immune to such challenges. An affiliation between Saint Joseph Mercy Health System and Chelsea Community Hospital will help CCH survive and thrive beyond what can be accomplished as a small independent hospital. In addition, SJMHS can help support future facility improvements and state-of-art clinical and information technology, such as electronic health record capability.

'An affiliation with SJMHS will strengthen the future of Chelsea Community Hospital and enhance our ability to continue to provide the high quality, accessible health care our communities have come to expect from us,' adds Griffiths.

Currently, Saint Joseph Mercy Health System is the leading healthcare provider in the southeastern Michigan counties of Washtenaw, Livingston, western Wayne and southwestern Oakland. Collectively, the health system includes nearly 8,500 employees, 1,600 physicians, serves more than 1.5 million patients and provided more than $58 million in community benefit ministry to the communities served in 2007.

The hospitals in SJMHS benefit patients by sharing best practices, medical breakthroughs, physician and professional expertise, technology advancements, quality and innovation, electronic medical records and excellence in the patient care experience.

'We are extremely pleased to have the opportunity to work more closely with Chelsea Community Hospital. Saint Joseph Mercy Health System and its physician partners have enjoyed a long term relationship with CCH and both organizations share a commitment to excellence and to the communities we serve,' shares Garry C. Faja, President and CEO, Saint Joseph Mercy Health System. Faja continues, 'Entering into a Letter of Intent with Chelsea Community Hospital continues our goal of collaboration versus competition in the southeastern Michigan health care community.'

Chelsea Community Hospital and Saint Joseph Mercy Health System are committed to providing exceptional health care to Chelsea and surrounding communities for years to come.

About Chelsea Community Hospital

Chelsea Community Hospital is an independent, non-profit medical facility established in 1970. Located in Chelsea, Michigan, CCH is nationally recognized for both quality of care and patient satisfaction by national ranking organization Press Ganey, and is accredited by the Joint Commission. CCH attracts more than 300 physicians in almost all disciplines. Please visit www.cch.org for more information on the many programs and services offered at CCH.

About Saint Joseph Mercy Health System

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, a member of Trinity Health, is a health care organization serving Washtenaw, Livingston, Jackson, Lenawee, Monroe, western Wayne and southwestern Oakland counties. It includes 537-bed St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, St. Joseph Mercy Saline Hospital with 74 beds, St. Joseph Mercy Livingston Hospital in Howell with136 beds and St. Mary Mercy Hospital in Livonia with 304 beds. Combined, the four hospitals are licensed for 1,051 beds, employ more than 8,400 individuals and have a medical staff of nearly 1,500 physicians.

Satellite sites include three Brighton facilities: St. Joseph Mercy Woodland Health Center and Urgent Care, St. Joseph Mercy Woodland Cancer Center; St. Joseph Mercy Canton Health Center and Urgent Care; and St. Joseph Mercy Maple Urgent Care in Ann Arbor.

About Trinity Health

Trinity Health is Michigan's leading health care provider and one of the state's largest employers, providing the full continuum of care for Michigan's residents, with 11 hospitals, nine nursing homes, 19 senior housing facilities, eight home health care agencies and four hospices serving 35 counties. More than 25,000 associates provide care to one in 11 Michigan residents. With a national headquarters in Novi, Trinity Health is an economic engine for the state with nearly $1.1 billion in payroll - and $1.2 billion in capital investment planned through 2011.

Trinity Health is a leader in quality and safety improvements with 90% of its clinical quality indicators above the mean. Trinity Health has pioneered a comprehensive health care IT initiative and has successfully launched electronic health record systems in 11 hospitals. Operationally, Trinity Health is reducing the cost of care through aggressive expense reduction, smarter purchasing and improvements in efficiency.

And as a Catholic-sponsored organization, Trinity Health is improving care for the poor and uninsured - spending nearly $142 million on programs for the poor and community outreach last year in Michigan.

Nationally, Trinity Health is the fourth-largest Catholic health care system with 43 acute-care hospitals, 379 outpatient facilities, 26 long-term care facilities, and numerous home health offices and hospice programs based in seven states. Employing 44,000 full-time staff, Trinity Health reported $6.1 billion in unrestricted revenue and $323.0 million in community benefits in fiscal year 2007. For more information about Trinity Health, visit www.trinity-health.org.