When the only focus those providing health care is the bottom line, the inevitable loser is the patient
By John Maurer, M.D.
On Dec. 4 Asante announced the closure of Ashland Orthopedic Clinic effective March 4, which coincides within days of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Ashland Orthopedic Associates.
My decision to embark on my life’s professional venture in a little town of 12,000 with a teachers’ college and a remarkable Shakespearean festival was made without a business model but only a vision of providing exceptional musculoskeletal care to a community whose family docs still made house calls.
In 1975 the manpower study of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons estimated it took a population of 50,000 folks to support an orthopedic surgeon. The same study did note a trend that was labeled the “Medford Phenomenon,” where 11 orthopedists were serving a town of less than 50,000. It was speculated that many younger surgeons, particularly in the West, were putting a premium on the quality of life a practice provided rather than income potential.
And so it began. Drawn not by me, but by this community that thrived on excellence, whether it be in the world of education, performing arts or cuisine, came the likes of Doug Morrison, a successful Bay Area orthopedic surgeon with an expertise in injuries of dance that made a perfect fit for OSF.
By the end of the ’80s, AOA expanded to include Scooter Townsend, with educational pedigrees that included Stanford and Harvard. He would leave team doc contracts with the L.A. Dodgers and Lakers unsigned so his kids could roam free and safe in a community with its clean mountain air. Admittedly, Ashland High School coach Jim Nagel and the Grizz winning their first state football championship was a deal maker that led Scooter to contribute thousands of pro bono hours in the locker rooms of AHS and SOU as a real sports medicine doc.
Lastly, Glen O’Sullivan, then professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Stanford University and head of its spinal surgery department, was lured to Ashland as the ideal place to raise four young sons versus the Palo Alto playground with its lofty Nordstroms and penchant for BMWs for teenage birthdays.
We brothers four enjoyed the Camelot years of health care in Ashland that would slowly come to an end by the turn of the century, when shrinking reimbursement from Medicare forced us to consider our alternatives.
Nationally, orthopedic groups were investing in ancillary services to protect their bottom lines. We dismissed the notion of building a same-day surgery center and/or installing our own MRI facility. We knew to do so would financially cripple our hospital. Our bottom line was knowing our patients were better served in a community-owned facility.
It is my profound sense of community loss that prompts me to pen this article. Please let me know how the loss of our hospital impacts you, whether it’s at the Y, standing in line at Bi-Mart or after church on Sunday. I’m sure it’s a lot more than the inconvenience of driving 12 miles to Medford for your care.
It’s been my privilege to serve you.
Ashland physician John Maurer is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon.
Ashland.news welcomes Viewpoint submissions of 500-700 words. Viewpoints may be emailed to [email protected] or submitted through the “Article Submission Form” link at the bottom right corner of the home page. Please include your name and city of residence with your Viewpoint (which will be published) and, in case we have a question, your contact information (which won’t be published unless you say it’s OK).
