Winchester Hospital to Join Forces with Lahey Health

This article was posted by Mark Ouellette. It was reported and written by Mark Ouellette.

Winchester Hospital’s Board of Directors recently announced that it has voted to enter into a letter of intent to affiliate with Burlington-based Lahey Health, according to a press statement. 

The new partnership will allow both organizations to adapt to the evolving healthcare landscape and to continue providing high-quality, cost-efficient, community-based care for the communities they serve in northeastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire, reads the statement.  

“This is an exciting step forward,” said Kevin Smith, president and CEO of Winchester Hospital, in the statement. “Winchester Hospital and Lahey Health both have a strong commitment to providing the highest quality healthcare right here in our communities. We believe that by joining Lahey Health, Winchester Hospital will be better positioned to continue to fulfill its mission of serving the health needs of our patients. An affiliation with Lahey Health will make Winchester Hospital an even more effective partner in maintaining and improving the health of the communities we serve.”

“Lahey Health and Winchester Hospital will make a great healthcare team,” said Howard Grant, JD, MD, president and CEO of Lahey Health, in the statement. “Two innovative organizations are aligning to create a comprehensive network of locally respected primary care physicians and nationally recognized specialists.  Together we will provide greater value to our patients where they live and work by enhancing the scope and quality of services.”

In August 2012, Winchester Hospital formed an Affiliation Steering Committee comprised of physicians, hospital staff and board leaders to identify a long-term, strategic partner that would provide the best opportunity to create an exceptional healthcare system, according to the statement. The board was also supported by its strategic and financial advisor Navigant Capital Advisors, as well as its outside legal counsel Mintz Levin, the statement adds.

Several hospitals and health systems participated in the extensive review process and ultimately Lahey Health was chosen as the best option, according to the statement.

Under this affiliation the organizations will build a stronger system of care in key clinical program areas, including primary care, women’s health, emergency medicine and cancer care, reads the statement. Winchester Hospital patients will gain access to tertiary level services locally through Lahey Health while maintaining access to Winchester Hospital providers, the statement adds.

After completing the affiliation agreement, Winchester Hospital will join the Lahey Health Board of Trustees as part of a shared governance model, reads the statement. The Lahey Health Board of Trustees will be made up of an equal number of representatives with full partnership from Winchester Hospital, the former Northeast Health System and Lahey Hospital & Medical Center Boards of Trustees, according to the statement. The organization will continue to be called Lahey Health, and Howard Grant, JD, MD, will remain as president and CEO, notes the statement.