Update on UI Health Care Medical Center Downtown: Q&A with Bradley Haws
It has been a little over a month since we officially welcomed the downtown campus as part of University of Iowa Health Care. As communicated before the transition, for the most part, much of the day-to-day work at the downtown campus remains the same. Providers are seeing patients and delivering the same high-quality care patients have come to expect. Work is underway, however, to better understand the downtown campus.
We asked Bradley Haws, CEO of University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, for an update on how the transition is going and any other relevant updates to share:
What are you hearing from downtown campus employees about the transition?
Overall, things are going well. Getting to that first week took an extraordinary amount of effort by so many, and we are pleased that there were very few issues and no interruption to patient care.
The goal in the short term has always been to maintain the level of care and services Mercy Iowa City had been providing, while taking time to assess what might be needed—and what the future could hold.
Volumes are generally staying consistent to where they were before the transition, with a few areas where we saw an upswing, which is encouraging!
The biggest lift right now and something we consider “all hands-on deck” is the transition to Epic, which is slated for May 4. We know this transition is eagerly anticipated by downtown campus employees, and we are working as quickly as possible to ensure a smooth conversion to this new system.
Do you know what services will be offered at the downtown campus in the future?
We know many are wondering how our downtown campus plays into UI Health Care’s long-term strategy. To be frank, adding the downtown campus to our system was not part of the strategic plan. But we are thankful that we had an opportunity to maintain patient access for the community while also preserving jobs.
We are very much in an exploratory phase, where every aspect of the downtown campus is being examined. There are many things to be determined for the future, but right now we’re listening and we’re learning. It’s important to remember the normal timeline to integrate another hospital into a system usually takes several years. We accomplished this in about 60 working days, so we still have a lot of work to do as a team to set our strategic goals and vision as a system.
An extensive evaluation process is underway to review everything from capacity needs to equipment to staffing, systems, processes, and more. A UI Health Care Advisory Board for the downtown campus has been assembled to help guide decision making and provide a third-party assessment of potential plans moving forward. The advisory committee is comprised of the following members:
- Latasha DeLoach, Iowa City Senior Center coordinator
- Tom Gelman, attorney
- Ann Perino, anesthesiologist at the downtown campus
- Jeff Quinlan, professor, chair and department executive officer of the UI Department of Family Medicine
- Robin Therme, CIVCO Medical Solutions president
- Pete Wallace, former Mercy Iowa City employee and former medical director and chair of the Johnson County Board of Health
The members were chosen for their community knowledge, understanding of the important role Mercy Iowa City held, and shared commitment to fostering a vision for the future. Their first meeting is being scheduled.
In addition, we have added three downtown campus employees to the Clinical Systems Committee, an internal governance committee of UI Health Care’s clinical operations. And a new committee will also be developed to support the 300 non-employed community health care providers that will continue to practice at the downtown campus, so they will have a voice.
We will continue to solicit provider and employee feedback to best understand the range of potential for a coordinated system of care to serve more Iowans across our Iowa City community and region. Employees with recommendations and ideas should talk with their leadership.
Are there any plans to make facilities changes at the downtown campus?
A full facilities and equipment assessment is underway, and it will help guide decisions and priorities for the downtown campus and clinics from a structural standpoint. Facilities teams are reviewing all details of each property to understand what needs to be fixed or updated, and what is currently in good condition. The team is also assessing the spaces from a capacity planning perspective to understand what possibilities exist.
Is it too soon to realize some of the benefits of the integration?
It’s not too soon at all! In fact, we have a great story to share that demonstrates the benefits of adding the downtown campus to UI Health Care. A few weeks ago, Labor and Delivery at the university campus was completely full. When this occurred recently, we were able to offer an alternative location for appropriate laboring patients to be delivered at the downtown campus and have also started offering to appropriate patients the opportunity to maintain their scheduled inductions or C-sections at the downtown campus when our university campus Labor and Delivery unit is full.
This is just one example so far—we are excited about the possibilities and the many opportunities ahead.