DATE: Wednesday, November 5, 1997           TAG: 9711050467

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B7   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LINDA McNATT, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: SUFFOLK                           LENGTH:   41 lines

OBICI ENTERS PACT WITH GATES MEDICAL CENTER AND A A HOSPITAL

Obici Health System has entered an agreement with a North Carolina hospital and a medical center in Gates County, N.C., to expand health care services for residents of the rural county.

Obici Hospital, Albemarle Hospital in Elizabeth City and Gates County Medical Center formed Gates County Medical Center LLC.

William C. Giermak, Obici's chief executive officer, said Monday that the business venture is an extension of a relationship that Obici formed with the medical center in 1994. As a result, the Suffolk hospital began sending specialists to Gates.

Albemarle Hospital also has had a close working relationship with the center, said Philip Bagby, administrator of Albemarle.

``A number of our physicians and staff have participated in the medical center's health fair the past two years,'' he said. ``And several of our specialists now have regular office hours there.''

Gates County Medical Clinic is in the center of the county, about 5 miles east of Gatesville and 30 minutes from each regional hospital.

``A lot of folks who live in Gates County work in Virginia,'' said Obici spokeswoman Susan Stone. ``If they are also a clinic patient, this will give them the opportunity to come to Obici when it's more convenient.''

The clinic, run by Dr. Luann Lewis, has added a nurse practitioner and a physician's assistant, allowing for expanded office hours.

Owned by Gates County Rural Health Services, the clinic sees 20 to 25 patients a day, Stone said. The goal is to immediately increase that number to at least 30, she said.

``In day-to-day operations, the medical center, Obici and Albemarle want to see what we can do together to provide more services to the community,'' Giermak said.

Representatives of Obici and Albemarle will sit on the clinic's board.

``Both hospitals will have a little bigger stake in providing services to our community,'' said Michael Conner, president of the Gates County Rural Health Services Board. ``We're very pleased to be working with both hospitals.''

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