Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 28, 1992 TAG: 9201280159
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: PAUL DELLINGER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Long
SAINT ALBANS AND CARILION JOIN FORCES
The 75-year-old Saint Albans Psychiatric Hospital in Radford will become affiliated with the Roanoke-based Carilion Health System in February, spokesmen for both organizations announced Monday.The move will have two basic results: Carilion can say it offers comprehensive health care including psychiatric services, and the door is open for Saint Albans to get more patients.
Carilion President Thomas L. Robertson said there would be no staff changes "and employees will notice virtually no change in daily reporting and operating responsibilities." He said the addition of a psychiatric facility to the 11 acute-care hospitals in Carilion will strengthen the system.
Saint Albans Administrator Robert L. Terrell Jr. said the affiliation will help bring in patients from the Carilion system, allow psychiatric and acute-care services to be combined, and reduce costs through system-wide buying and shared resources.
It also will allow Saint Albans and Carilion's Roanoke Memorial Hospital to market psychiatric services jointly, he said.
One member of the Saint Albans board will join the Carilion board. The hospital's name will stay the same.
The Saint Albans Board of Directors voted unanimously Friday night to support an agreement in principle to affiliate, with formal agreements to be completed next month. Employees were told of the agreement Monday shortly before the 3 p.m. public announcement.
Terrell said the board and administration had considered the move for several years, but that serious deliberations started in recent months. He called the announcement "an occasion which will become a milestone in the history of psychiatric care in Southwest Virginia."
Saint Albans, founded in 1916 by the late Dr. John C. King, already had made history of a sort. It was, and is, the only non-profit psychiatric hospital in Virginia. It celebrated its 75th anniversary in August.
Robertson, the Carilion president, said Dr. James King - a son of the founder who continued to be associated with Saint Albans - was instrumental in the board's decision to affiliate.
"Carilion will be much stronger through the affiliation," he said. "Saint Albans will be unique in the Carilion system in that it is a psychiatric hospital and serves patients from West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina, in addition to Virginia. . . . We think that it will be a win-win situation with everyone involved."
Robertson said Saint Albans was not joining Carilion because it was losing money or experiencing problems of any kind. In fact, he said, its number of patients increased slightly last year. But psychiatric hospitals across the country are experiencing pressures from shorter patient stays and other factors.
There were no financial payments from either side, he said. "We think there can be some economies," he said.
It also strengthens the health care partnership between the Roanoke Valley and New River Valley, he said, noting that Radford Community Hospital and Giles Memorial Hospital both joined Carilion in 1988. Carilion has facilities from Farmville to Big Stone Gap, a geographical area in which Radford falls close to the middle.
"We're proud to become part of the Saint Albans tradition of providing high-quality care in meeting the psychiatric needs of the people of Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia in a very cost-effective manner," he said.
In meeting with employees, Robertson said, their main concerns had centered on job security and he had sought to reassure them about that. He said no changes are planned and that Terrell, who has been administrator for 12 years, will continue in that job.
"Saint Albans has a significant effect on the economy of the New River Valley," Terrell said.
"We have approximately 350 employees, and we have an annual payroll of about $9 million, and we spend another approximate $6 million in supplies and services predominantly in the New River Valley," Terrell said. "At a time when many organizations have been reducing their work force and others closing their doors, the community can be comfortable knowing that the future is bright at Saint Albans."
He said Saint Albans would continue to provide general adult psychiatric services, and would be Carilion's sole provider of child and adolescent services and substance-abuse programs. He also announced that the psychiatric residency program at Roanoke Memorial would be extended to Saint Albans. Dr. Basil E. Roebuck, president of the medical staff, said the staff endorsed the affiliation.
"Being part of the Carilion system means that the resources available to us will be enhanced, so that we can maintain the high level of quality care this staff has rendered for so many years," Roebuck said.
"As the hospital grows, the Carilion system will be valuable in recruiting new staff to enable the hospital to expand its services," he said. "Finally, we all feel excited about the expansion of Roanoke Memorial's psychiatric residency program to Saint Albans. Young residents working for us will be a positive force for us and for the hospital."
NOTE: Shorter version ran in Metro edition.