Muskogee Regional Medical Center Preps for the New Day
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Muskogee Regional Medical Center began a new chapter in its history when it opened its expansion and renovation in May 2007.
Long serving Oklahoma’s eastern region‚ the medical facility now intends to put additional health-care services‚ more funding and‚ soon‚ new physicians to work for communities in the Muskogee area.
“This regional market has a lot of potential‚ and we intend to realize it‚” declares Steve Mahan‚ Muskogee Regional Medical Center CEO.
That was the same attitude expressed by the private hospital management firm Capella Health Inc.‚ when it acquired Muskogee Regional in 2007. Capella has put up $28 million to help move the hospital into a new era.
“Capella will make this possible‚” Mahan says of the new plans for the medical center. “Their access to capital is going to be critical in strengthening our role in this marketplace.”
Entering that new era requires a two-pronged strategy that is already well under way.
First‚ Muskogee Regional has added new facilities. The center’s patients – now numbering 30‚000 a year – will find a brand new surgery center with more advanced medical technology on site than ever before. The expansion will allow the hospital to do more work in general surgery‚ orthopedic surgery and cardiology‚ Mahan says.
At the same time‚ Muskogee Regional’s cancer center was upgraded to offer some of the most advanced treatments and diagnostic equipment available in the state.
A Place To Call Home
The second prong of the strategy will be recruiting new physicians to the hospital staff. In an era of physician shortages in cities around the country‚ that task has required Muskogee Regional to think creatively.
Mahan’s plan is to create a syndication package early in 2008 that would offer physicians an ownership interest in the medical center.
The plan would set aside up to 30 percent of the venture’s equity to dis tribute among the hospital’s exist ing physician staff‚ and then make another 10 percent of the equity avail able to new physicians who decide to come work at the medical center.
The center is already marketing itself to physicians‚ seeking specialists in several fields‚ such as orthopedics and neurosurgery.
Mahan estimates that at least 25 new staff professionals will be required as the business plan unfolds‚ although the number probably will end up being higher. He envisions a five-year process to find all the necessary physicians for the medical center.
In addition to letting the medical world see and consider the health center‚ the recruitment drive also puts Muskogee itself on full display‚ notes Laurie Hoog‚ marketing director of Muskogee Regional Medical Center.
Interested candidates will be attracted to Muskogee because of the area’s many amenities.
“Maybe they will have family ties nearby‚ or they’re looking for a smaller community‚” Hoog says‚ adding that applications already are beginning to come in. “They may be drawn to the Oklahoma lifestyle‚ to the outdoors and the lakes that surround us.”
Story by Nancy Humphrey
Photo by Michael W. Bunch
