Valley General Hospital issues RFP for strategic partnership
Hospital looks at options for enhancing heath care services for community

Monroe, WA – Valley General Hospital has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to consider a strategic partnership to enhance health care services. Such an alliance could provide the community with a broader range of health care services and access to medical professionals through an expanded network.

“Long-term a partnership could help us fulfill our mission to provide quality and contemporary health care services that our community needs and deserves,” said Mike Liepman, Chief Executive Officer.

Valley General’s Board of Commissioners seeks an organization that shares the hospital’s mission, vision and values, which include providing quality health care services in east Snohomish County and maintaining its long-standing commitment to the community.

“The health care industry is rapidly changing,” said Board President Neil Watkins. “It makes sense to look at all our options when considering how we will deliver health care services in the future.”

Larger health care organizations are more integrated for patient care and have access to resources that smaller systems do not. A partnership could help Valley General provide a broader range of services for patients, respond to new federal programs, access new resources, continue to care for vulnerable populations, and increase opportunities to recruit and retain skilled medical staff.

In Washington many hospitals, including district hospitals like Valley General, are seeking similar alliances to provide their communities with more comprehensive health care. Valley Medical in Renton is evaluating an alliance with the University of Washington Medicine. Swedish and Stevens Hospital in Edmonds are working together. Southwest in Vancouver partnered with PeaceHealth. Enumclaw Regional Hospital has partnered with Franciscan Health System, and Good Samaritan in Puyallup merged with MultiCare of Tacoma.

“We won’t know what opportunities are out there until we go through this process,” said Liepman. “And, we believe that this is the proactive and responsible thing to do in terms of future patient care.”

Quality patient care and access to health care services will continue throughout the RFP process. Proposals are to be submitted to Valley General by the beginning of March. Any proposals submitted, as well as the possibility of maintaining Valley General as a standalone facility, will be evaluated over two months at which point a non-binding letter of intent could be signed. At that point, both Valley General and the potential partner(s) would spend additional time determining if a partnership is in the best interest of all parties.

Question and answer session are scheduled for the community on Monday, February 14th at 7:30 am; Thursday, February 17th at 6 pm; and Saturday, February 19th at 10:30 am. All meetings will be held in the Godard Room at Valley General Hospital, 14701 179th Ave. S.E., in Monroe.

Valley General is an accredited, full-service district hospital located in Monroe, Wash., since 1960. The hospital district includes 100,000 people in central and eastern Snohomish County, and provides primary care for community members through the Sky River Medical Group. Valley General’s mission is to serve the changing health care needs of its community. It provides personalized patient care known for quality and excellence with a healing environment through caring relationships.

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