Uniontown Hospital announces intent to join WVU Medicine
UNIONTOWN, PA. – Uniontown Hospital has signed a letter of intent to join the West Virginia University Health System, which operates under the brand “WVU Medicine.” The move comes after a year of transition for Uniontown Hospital as hospital leaders worked to navigate many regional changes in healthcare. The letter of intent lays out an agreement that will ensure that Uniontown Hospital will continue to operate as an acute care facility in Fayette County for years to come.
“We are excited to join with WVU Medicine and to look to the future of healthcare in Fayette County,” Uniontown Hospital CEO Steve Handy said. “This is an opportunity to ensure exceptional care for our patients, to ensure that local healthcare remains available to all those who count on us, to continue to act as an economic driver and source for regional employment, and, ultimately, to continue to make a healthy difference in the lives we touch.”
Upon receipt of regulatory approvals, Uniontown Hospital will enter into a management agreement with WVU Hospitals, pursuant to which Mr. Handy will become an employee of WVU Hospitals, along with other senior leaders at Uniontown. Under the Management Agreement, Handy will continue as CEO of Uniontown Hospital.
“From a geographical standpoint, we are uniquely positioned to partner with Uniontown Hospital to provide world-class healthcare to the people of Fayette County. The partnership also aligns with our mission to ensure that people do not have to travel great distances to find the care they need,” Albert L. Wright, Jr., president and CEO of the WVU Health System, said.
Uniontown Hospital, founded in 1902, provides a full range of medical care to residents of Fayette County and the surrounding areas. Healthcare services provided at the acute and specialty care hospital include an award-winning cardiology department and catheterization lab, an award-winning Stroke Center, and a Wound Healing Center. Services also include emergency care; medical/surgical care, including orthopedic care, cancer care, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, and infusion services; and complete diagnostic services, including laboratory, cardiac diagnostics, and open and high field MRI, PET/CT, and digital mammography. Uniontown features 145 private patient rooms, and more than 200 physicians and advanced practice providers representing more than 30 medical specialties.
The West Virginia University Health System, which operates under the brand “WVU Medicine,” is both West Virginia’s largest health system and largest private employer. Comprised of 11 owned hospitals, including its 700-bed flagship academic medical center in Morgantown, WVU Health System also provides management services to several community-based hospitals and clinics across a four-state region that includes West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Maryland. The academic health system also includes a children’s hospital – WVU Medicine Children’s – and five institutes – the WVU Cancer Institute, the WVU Critical Care and Trauma Institute, the WVU Eye Institute, the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute, and the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. For more information, visit WVUMedicine.org.
Media Inquiries for Uniontown Hospital:
Josh Krysak, Director of Community Relations, Uniontown Hospital, 724-430-8634, krysak@utwn.org