Coastal Community Health

The regional affiliation of Baptist Health System, Inc., Jacksonville, Florida (FEIN 59-2487136) and Southeast Georgia Health System, Inc., Brunswick, GA (FEIN 58-1911751) was created to be able to accomplish certain things together, like improve clinical quality and overall patient care, share best practices, reduce healthcare costs, save money on supply chain purchases, and address pediatric health in the communities served. Some of the initiatives that were continued or developed during this tax year include the following: Pediatric- The group established the NFL Play 60 program, which addresses childhood obesity and overall physical fitness, in all the primary service counties. Also, Kid Fit, a program addressing healthy lifestyle choices and exercise, was implemented in Glynn County, GA and in Duval County, FL. Quality- the affiliates began sharing best practices to work to lower the incidents of hospital acquired infections. Tele-Health Consultations- these consultations began running for tele-stroke, tele-neurology, and tele-pediatrics programs between Baptist Health and Southeast Georgia Health System. Disaster Planning- the affiliates implement the applicable portions of their mutual aid agreements during times of disaster. IT - The collaboration efforts between the affiliate partners continued across topics of aligned technologies and interests to improve service and cost savings between the organizations. This is included an extensive partnership discussion surround the Epic electronic health record application set within Baptist Health System, cybersecurity guidance, the impact to IT staffing, business operations and an overall cost model for deployment and support. The session also included contracting guidance and opportunities for pricing improvement along with evaluation of shared staffing opportunities. The teams continue to share on common platforms impacting both organizations, such as ERP, HCM and FM. Supply Chain- The affiliates implemented contracts for supplies that created approximately $14 million in cumulative annual savings. Human Resources- the affiliates worked to secure non-medical benefits and direct cost-savings to employees across the two health systems.