Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast, part of Ascension, one of the leading non-profit and Catholic health systems in the U.S, has signed an agreement with Healthcare Outcomes Performance Company (HOPCo) to create a transformational healthcare platform that will improve the quality of musculoskeletal care and patient outcomes across North Florida.

Through the partnership, Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast and HOPCo are developing a clinically-integrated, musculoskeletal platform that will include comprehensive musculoskeletal hospital service line management and innovative programs to promote outpatient care. In Northeast Florida, the partnership will also include the development of ambulatory surgery centers as well as the first orthopedic specialty hospital in the region. The parties will also work together to develop a clinically-integrated network of musculoskeletal physician practices.

HOPCo is partnered with Southeast Orthopedic Specialists, the leading musculoskeletal provider in the Jacksonville market. HOPCo is a leading provider of musculoskeletal outcomes and fully integrated management, value-based health care solutions and care coordination for practices, payors and health systems.

“Our Mission is to provide clinically excellent, compassionate, personalized care to all people, with special attention to those who are struggling the most,” said Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast President and CEO Tom VanOsdol. “This partnership represents a quantum leap forward in our goal to increase access to the finest available musculoskeletal care for those we are so blessed to serve.”

Together HOPCo, Southeast Orthopedic Specialists, and Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast will partner with other physicians in the community to develop an aligned and efficient network that coordinates the best care for patients. 

“At end of the day, this is about bringing together all musculoskeletal providers — hospitals, physicians, ambulatory surgery centers — into one highly-integrated network and delivering quality and value to the community as we have done with partners in many regions,” said DeLyle Manwaring, Executive Vice President of Health Systems for HOPCo. “We are honored to work with these two organizations to build the next generation of transformative musculoskeletal care for the patients of northern Florida.”

A clinically-integrated network (CIN), like the one this partnership is creating, is designed to improve overall quality of care and efficiency of care delivery by allowing providers to streamline care for their shared patients, which has been proven to result in improved outcomes and lower costs for both patients and insurers.

“After partnering with HOPCo earlier this year, the creation of a clinically-integrated network with a top-tier health system was our first area of focus and we could not have a better partner than Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast,” said Donnie Romine, CEO of Southeast Orthopedic Specialists.