Focus to be on recruitment of specialty care clinicians to Wausau area

By Adam Hocking

Editor

MARSHFIELD — Ministry Health Care announced via press release today that its relationship with the Medical College of Wisconsin is “moving forward.”

“In mid-December both organizations announced signing of a letter of intent to explore a potential partnership and today’s announcement signals the successful outcome of that effort and the establishment of a strong working relationship between the two prominent healthcare organizations,” the release said.

The partnership is an effort to help Ministry bring more “specialty care clinicians” to service its facilities, particularly in the Wausau market. Those clinicians will be needed to service Ministry’s new clinic being built on the west side of Wausau and what will be an expanded range of services at its Weston hospital, Ministry Saint Clare’s.

In a previous press release, Dr. John Raymond, president and CEO of the Medical College of Wisconsin, said the partnership helps his organization to “extend the reach of our specialty care services and to allow for greater opportunities for medical education across key areas throughout the state.”

The partnership will allow the organizations to collaborate in order to bring clinicians to live and work in the Wausau area.

“Under the agreement, all Medical College of Wisconsin-employed clinicians in the market will serve through Ministry Medical Group at their individual locations, and the management of the specialty practices will be done jointly between the two organizations,” the release said.

“The agreement announced today moves Ministry toward our goal of expanding services and making care from the Medical College of Wisconsin more available as part of a clinically integrated care system for residents of central Wisconsin,” said Daniel Neufelder, president and CEO of Ministry Health Care. “Our two organizations share a commitment to patient care and local communities. The partnership is key for Ministry’s long-term growth goals in Wausau and aligns with Ascension’s model of clinical care strategies.” Ascension owns Ministry Health Care and is the largest catholic health system in the world.

“The agreement we are announcing today allows us to move forward with aggressively recruiting clinicians and expanding the presence of the Medical College in central Wisconsin,” said Dr. Dan DeBehnke, CEO of Medical College Physicians Group.