By Ed Wilson
In April, Orcas Medical Foundation (OMF) announced a planned affiliation with Island Hospital of Anacortes. To keep people informed, OMF has posted a detailed “Questions & Answers” link at orcasmedicalcenter.com, under “NON-PROFIT.”
The preliminary plan calls for Island Hospital to manage the Orcas Medical Center (OMC) practice beginning in August. Under the plan, both the medical and the administrative staffs of OMC will become employees of Island Hospital.
Since 2006, Dr. Tony Giefer’s practice, Orcas Medical Center, PLLC, has managed the Medical Center practice. Before that, from 1992 to 2004, the practice was managed by Island Hospital. The Medical Center building, itself, is wholly owned by the non-profit OMF, which contracts for management of the practice.
“We believe that affiliation with Island Hospital will add a major level of financial stability to Orcas Island health care,” said Norm Zimlich, OMF Board President.
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