Each day, more than 100 residents of the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia are treated for illnesses and injuries at hospitals outside the state. City Hospital in Martinsburg and Jefferson Memorial Hospital in Ranson have joined with West Virginia University Hospitals to launch a long-term effort to expand healthcare accessibility to residents of the region and bring back millions of dollars in healthcare spending to the local economy.

Both Eastern Panhandle hospitals are independent nonprofit community hospitals. They have entered into a nonbinding partnership negotiation with West Virginia University Hospitals, which is also a not-for-profit healthcare provider and a member hospital of West Virginia United Health System . The governing boards of all three hospitals have authorized negotiations toward a merged regional healthcare delivery system tightly tied to WVU ’s teaching efforts.

The hospital leadership teamsboth administrators and community boardshave been engaged in discussions with each other and with WVU Hospitals to determine if a merger is feasible.

Donald Mickey, president of the Board of Directors of Jefferson Memorial Hospital, said that the hospital has been evaluating its future for some time.We had an excellent processwe looked at various options and potential partners, and we believe this is the best opportunity for our community at this time.

J. Wayne Lancaster, chairman of the City Hospital Board of Trustees, said the Board explored several strategies for future growth over the past year.This represents an excellent opportunity to develop a premier regional healthcare delivery system in the Eastern Panhandle,he said.

Both hospitals have been a part of WVU ’s teaching network for more than a decade. The Bolivar Medical Center , which houses WVU ’s Harpers Ferry Family Medicine residency program, is in Jefferson County . Thanks to an appropriation secured by U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, WVU recently announced plans to construct an education building on the City Hospital campus in Martinsburg.

Leaders of all three hospitals have met many times over the past year to discuss how a unified health system could benefit the eastern part of the state,said Bruce McClymonds, president of WVU Hospitals.We all believe in the necessity of building resources in the state, so that patients do not have to leave West Virginia for care. It’s clear that we can do a better job working together, and growing together, than any of the hospitals could do alone.

A major impetus for the creation of a regional system is the area’s population growth.Hospital services in this area have not grown as fast as the population, and as a result many residents of both counties seek healthcare outside West Virginia ,Mr. Mickey said.That draws both dollars and jobs out of our communities, and makes access to specialized services more difficult for patients. We think that we can turn that around by working together.

Lancaster added that talks between the two local hospitals convinced both boards of the advantages of working together.A regional approach to healthcare is our best opportunity to serve more of the people of our community,he said.

Committees appointed by each of the three hospital governing boards have been in serious discussions with one another for several months. Each has agreed not to seek partnerships with other hospitals in the region while the discussions proceed. During the rest of the negotiating period, each hospital will be prohibited from making public announcements, either through the news media or by other means, regarding the progress of the talks.