ER Physicians at DeKalb Medical Center -DMC- Transition From Hospital Employees to California-Based Private Physician Practice Model.

EMERYVILLE, Calif. -- When DeKalb Medical Center desired to transition the current emergency department physicians from employees managed by the hospital to an independent physician group, the California Emergency Physicians Medical Group (CEP) practice model was selected as the basis of a new physician group. DeKalb Emergency Physicians (DEP), LLP, was formed to be as similar as possible to its California affiliate CEP, a democratic partnership with broad physician ownership and equity in its physician practices. CEP has a 30-year track record of achieving strong operational performance, and attracting and retaining the best board certified emergency physicians.

Emergency physicians in California have often emerged as trendsetters with innovative solutions in areas such as clinical practice, malpractice and managed care. For example, MICRA, a California law which mandates limits on financial payments for liability claims, has been the impetus for many other states to help physicians reduce spiraling malpractice costs. Recently the Georgia legislature passed and the governor signed Georgia SB3, which also provides limits on financial payouts for liability claims. Similarly, it would follow that an emergency physician group with a large California base would have valuable experience in many other challenging areas that was applicable to emergency medicine services delivery in the DMC community. CEP brings solutions and resources to successfully partner with the emergency physicians at DMC, while supporting the hospital's strategic plan.

The hospital administration sought broad input within DMC and allowed the current emergency physicians working at DMC significant influence in the selection process for a new emergency physician contracting entity, which resulted in the development of DeKalb Emergency Physicians, LLP, an affiliate of CEP. The model allows the group the best of both worlds -- the significant autonomy at the local practice of DEP in Georgia coupled with the resources of a large network of 54 emergency department practices providing emergency care to over 2,000,000 patients annually.

Patients benefit, too! CEP has received national attention for its Rapid Medical Evaluation Program, which is a successful and proven methodology for decreasing patient wait time in the ED. The RME Program, first implemented in 2002, fundamentally changes the way patients are treated in the Emergency Department (ED). Under RME, the treatment process is fluid and based on demand and resource availability to ensure that treatment is provided as quickly as possible. The treatment process begins immediately and includes initial assessment, the ordering of labs and x-rays, and, in some cases, rapid discharge without utilizing a bed in the ED. When beds are available, patients are promptly placed in an ED bed and examined by a physician. "This program will be in effect from day one for the new DeKalb Medical Center Emergency Department at Hillandale which opens its doors on July 18, and we hope patients will be very satisfied with the mix of old-fashioned caring coupled with state of the art practice programs and efficiencies," states Dr. Wesley Curry, President of CEP.

Stephen Holbrook, MD, FACEP, will be the acting Medical Director overseeing both sites. Drs. Lela Gail Matthews and Frank Rasler also join the physician management team as Assistant Medical Directors of Operations and Quality Improvement, respectively. Dr. Holbrook's primary responsibilities will be to develop and refine the emergency department treatment team, strengthen medical staff relations and advance the visions of DMC for emergency care for its community.

Enthusiastic about the new partnership affiliation, Dr. John Fredericks is a Regional Medical Director for CEP and coordinator of the transition of the current emergency physicians at DMC to DeKalb Emergency Physicians. He states, "Our affiliated physician partners look forward to contributing to the advancement of emergency medicine within the state and participating as colleagues with other emergency physicians in Georgia in the delivery of the best possible emergency services."

The Emergency Department at DMC Central is a Level 3 Trauma Center and has approximately 77,000 visits per year. It is anticipated that DMC Hillandale will see 25,000 patients in the first year of operation. For more information on CEP, visit their website at www.cep.com.