NYU Langone Medical Center and Lutheran Medical Center announced approval by their boards of an affiliation agreement that will bring the two organizations together to create a clinically integrated healthcare provider network for the New York Metropolitan area.

NYU Langone has multiple ambulatory sites throughout the region, in addition to its main Manhattan hospital campuses, and Lutheran, in collaboration with its affiliated federally qualified health center, Lutheran Family Health Centers, operates an expansive network of ambulatory practices in four boroughs of New York. This new agreement creates a formal health system between the two organizations that extends NYU Langone’s presence in Brooklyn, while bolstering Lutheran’s access to NYU Langone’s vast offering of medical and surgical specialties.

Regulatory approval for the combination and new health system entity will be sought with the hope that approvals will be completed in 2015.

“We have been working closely with Lutheran over the last several months to assess whether a partnership would benefit each of our institutions, the Brooklyn community and, most importantly, the patients and families who turn to us for help,” said Robert I. Grossman, MD, dean and CEO of NYU Langone. “Today’s agreement publicly confirms our confidence that an affiliation will allow both of our institutions to collaborate and share best practices to better meet the healthcare needs of the communities we serve.”

Dr. Grossman stressed that the quality of programs and services provided at Lutheran Medical Center and its affiliated practices was a key determining factor for NYU Langone, adding, “It was important for us to work with an organization that shares our level of commitment to patient care. From the continuity and quality-of-care perspective alone, we have an excellent foundation for establishing a meaningful relationship.”

Wendy Z. Goldstein, president and CEO of Lutheran, also praised the partnership. “Our talks with NYU Langone have been successful because of the great respect they have for Lutheran and what we have built over the years,” she said. “We are proud of the fact that we have created and continue to foster an extraordinarily effective and efficient delivery system that succeeds because of our ability to deliver low cost, high quality care.”

Dr. Grossman also acknowledged Lutheran’s early, pioneering work in expanding outpatient clinical services into its neighboring communities. “They truly set a standard that many other institutions, both here in New York City and, indeed, across the country, have followed,” he added.

Fundamentally, the agreement paves the way for both institutions to address the changing healthcare environment, as payment reform has shifted the focus from hospital- to community-based care. Data shows that patients who historically have travelled to Manhattan for care are now seeking high quality, patient-centered primary and specialty care in their neighborhoods. This affiliation agreement allows both institutions to respond to this changing landscape and stabilize healthcare delivery in Brooklyn. This will be accomplished by:

• Creating a fully integrated delivery system in Brooklyn by leveraging Lutheran’s existing primary care network, culturally responsive programs, and community relationships across the continuum of care.
• Developing a system-wide, state-of-the-art IT infrastructure and connectivity to support clinical integration and population health management initiatives and analytics.
• Enabling interventions by specialists earlier and more often for chronic conditions.
• Extending access to world class ambulatory care.
• Focusing on key programmatic initiatives including maternal and child health, cancer services, cardiac and vascular services, and physician network development.

Ms. Goldstein explained, “Partnering will ultimately provide Lutheran and its patients with increased access to the world-renowned, high quality services that are the hallmark of NYU Langone, and will serve to strengthen the excellent services we currently provide.”

NYU Langone and Lutheran are already serving as partners for patients currently being seen at NYU Langone-Cobble Hill, NYU Langone’s freestanding emergency department at the site of the former Long Island College Hospital. As plans unfold to further develop services at this location, including the establishment of a new emergency and ambulatory care center, this important relationship will greatly enhance these efforts.

About Lutheran HealthCare:
Lutheran HealthCare is an academic, community health care and social support system that includes Lutheran Medical Center, Lutheran Family Health Centers, Lutheran Augustana Center for Extended Care and Rehabilitation, senior housing, and Community Care Organization. Lutheran is home to a nationally recognized cultural competence program and was named a finalist for the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) inaugural Equity of Care Award for its efforts to reduce health care disparities and promote diversity. Lutheran Medical Center, founded in 1883, is a full service 450-bed academic teaching, tertiary care hospital that serves as the hub of Lutheran HealthCare. It includes a Level I Trauma Center, a N.Y.S. designated Stroke Center, STEMI Center, and a bariatric center of excellence. Lutheran Family Health Centers is one of the largest and most comprehensive federally qualified health centers in the country. It has a 47-year history of providing high quality health care and social support services to the ethnically diverse and underserved communities of Brooklyn. It has been recognized as a Level 3 Patient Centered Medical Home by the National Committee for Quality Assurance. To receive this recognition, a provider must demonstrate that it has exceptional systems of care that help patients achieve the best health outcomes.

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