THARPTOWN - Three days into the formation of Geisinger-Shamokin Area Community Hospital, staff and administration gathered Tuesday to welcome the 300 employees of the Coal Township hospital to the Geisinger Health System.
Officials from Geisinger Medical Center (GMC) and Shamokin Area Community Hospital (SACH) joined with employees in the morning for a reception marking the merger of the two hospitals. The event from 7 to 9 a.m. for first- and third-shift employees was the first of two receptions. The other, from 3 to 4 p.m., accommodated second-shift employees on the first official business day at the institution since Sunday's merger.
Tom Sokola and Tom Harlow, chief administrative officers for GMC and Geisinger-Shamokin Area Community Hospital, a Campus of Geisinger Medical Center, respectively, greeted employees with refreshments and gifts of pens and I.D. badge lanyards.
"In talking with a lot of employees today, there certainly is a bit of excitement in the air," Sokola said during the afternoon reception. "There's a little bit of nervous energy as well, but everyone is excited about it."
Employees and others have already been abbreviating the lengthy new hospital name - a name created not only by the merger, but also by the necessity of state regulations - as Geisinger-SACH, or "G-SACH."
The first official day of the merger, which required approval by two state agencies, was marked with every employee working at midnight Sunday receiving a small bottle of sparkling apple cider and logo-branded cookies as the merger took effect.
SACH, which marks its 100th anniversary in 2012, and Geisinger, which is just three years younger, are nonprofit entities, and they'll remain that way. A ceremony to mark SACH's centennial and also the merger is set for 9 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 11, at G-SACH.
300 join 14,000
The approximately 300 employees of SACH became Geisinger employees as of Sunday, and no layoffs are planned because of the merger, officials said previously. The employee count throughout the expansive Geisinger Health System is 14,000.
After some 18 months of talks, the merger was first announced on Nov. 23, 2010, representing the most significant change in local health care since the state divestiture of hospitals two decades ago. That divestiture almost spelled the end of the former Shamokin General Hospital, but a strong board of directors and community support were credited for its survival, and over the next two decades the campus underwent significant renovations while a collaboration with Geisinger grew, too.
Attitudes 'remarkable'
Geisinger President and CEO Glenn Steele Jr., M.D., along with Sokola and Harlow, addressed the future in a news release issued by GMC.
"Geisinger is committed to the traditions of quality and service that characterize Shamokin," Steele said. "We are just beginning to consider the extraordinary possibilities this merger represents for the people of Coal Township. As we bring this talented group of individuals together, we're certain a much stronger, more dynamic health care community will emerge."
"Over the past several months, numerous staff members from both Geisinger and Shamokin partnered tirelessly to make this merger a reality," Sokola was quoted in the release. "We thank the clinicians, technicians, support staff and everyone involved in making sure that this was a seamless transition for both patients and employees."
"This is an exciting time," Harlow said. "We are proud of our history of caring here in Coal Township, and confident that our new relationship with Geisinger will enable us to build on a century of service to this community."
At the afternoon reception, Harlow and Sokola talked further about the transition. "There are some new processes and programs to learn, and the staff and physicians have been working with that," Harlow said. "The attitude of everyone at both campuses has been remarkable."
"Throughout the transition, there have been minor problems, but everything is going as well as can be expected," Sokola said. "The timing with it happening over the weekend, when the hospital wasn't fully functioning, was a big help."
Records in one system
Linda Musser, director of information technology, said all medical records were added to the Geisinger database ahead of time so that when 12:01 a.m. Sunday hit, all patient records were accessible in one system.
"Patients who have access to the MyGeisinger website will now see information from Shamokin hospital visits as well," Musser said. "It's all on one record that any doctor, even from a laptop at home or office, can access on as-needed basis."
Approvals for the merger, including regulatory approval by the state Attorney General and the Department of Health, were granted last summer.
Patients will continue to access all existing services and eventually additional services at G-SACH, including 24/7 emergency services.
Better future
"The main thing that is coming from all this, is that the exceptional care that comes from the employees of Geisinger, whether in Shamokin or anywhere throughout the system, will not change," said Susan Hallack, chief nursing officer for the Geisinger Health System.
"The merger is good news for the hospital, our patients and employees, and the Shamokin community," Harlow was quoted in the news release. "Serving the area as a campus of Geisinger Medical Center will better enable us to promote quality, cost-effective care and enhanced access to services, as well as ensure future access to health care in Shamokin."
Merger notes
Founded: GMC, 1915; SACH, 1912.
Service area: Geisinger Health System, based in Danville, serves more than 2.6 million residents throughout 44 counties in central and northeastern Pennsylvania; SACH, located in Tharptown, Coal Township, serves central, eastern and southern Northumberland County and surrounding communities in Columbia, Schuylkill and other counties.
Beds: At GMC in Danville, 495, plus 40 in joint venture with Health South Rehab hospital on the campus; at Shamokin, 70 (45 acute care; 15 skilled nursing; 10 in-patient geriatric-psychiatry).
Employees: Geisinger Health System, 14,000; G-SACH, 300.
Unions: GMC does not recognize unions. SACH had two unions representing about 80 percent of its workforce; one union has already decertified the other union and its contract are no longer recognized by the hospital as of Sunday's merger.
Pay and benefits: Rates for SACH employees will remain mostly unchanged, although some could see raises. G-SACH employees now receive GMC's benefits plan.
Insurances/services: The same services remain for patients at SACH, and it will accept the same insurance providers as before. The state required that G-SACH continue to accept the same Medicare Advantage plans for three years, even though there are four that Geisinger doesn't currently accept.