PHOTOS: Mercy IC makes the official transition to UI Health Care Medical Center Downtown

The former Mercy Iowa City hospital was a beehive of activity Wednesday, Jan. 31, when the institution officially joined the University of Iowa Health Care (UI Health Care) team, assuming the new name of UI Health Care Medical Center Downtown to reflect the transition. Outside the hospital, Latitude Signage + Design was busy replacing the Mercy signs with UI Health Care’s, pulling the entrance sign out of its frame and scraping the decals off the doors. Inside, members of the UI Health Care staff were positioned at building entrances to greet employees as they arrived Wednesday morning. Black and gold balloons adorned the lobbies, joining an inflatable Herky. At one entrance, tables graced with black tablecloths sporting the UI Health Care logo displayed notebooks and water bottles, swag for the incoming staff members. Approximately 1,000 former Mercy Iowa City providers and team members joined UI Health Care as new colleagues that day, according to a news release.

Bradley Haws, CEO and associate vice president of UI Health Care, was on hand to welcome employees. Mr. Haws said he was excited about having a larger team in order to serve the community better, that the expanded resources were a way to “better serve not just Eastern Iowa, but the state.”

Seeking input from patients

Denise Jamieson, MD, MPH, UI vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz dean of the Carver College of Medicine, reiterated the University’s commitment to ensuring uninterrupted care and access to existing services for current patients and welcoming new colleagues, in a media event hosted by UI Health Care that morning. “The mission of the University of Iowa Health Care is to provide care for 3.2 million Iowans across the state, and particularly for Iowans in the region,” she said. “Going forward in the coming weeks, we're going to be talking to community members, we're going to be talking to patients, we're going to be making an assessment as to what services are needed.” Dr. Jamieson said the facility will remain the same for now, but there will be strategies put forth to determine how it can best serve the community going forward.

“We're really going to look toward the community and look toward our patients to provide that input,” she said. “There are things that will need to be improved and addressed, such as parking structures and (the) electronic medical record (system). We've got to convert the electronic medical record and we’re going to do it as quickly as possible,” adding that spring is the target date. A week before Mercy Iowa City made the official transition to UI Health Care Medical Center Downtown, it was embroiled in a dispute with Altera Digital Health, its electronic medical record system. A condition of the sale between the hospital and UI Health Care hinged on Altera honoring its commitment to Mercy in providing a year’s worth of services UI Health Care following the termination of their contract, to help the University transition its medical records. Altera expressed reluctance unless Mercy dropped claims against it and paid for services in full. The two entities were able to reach an agreement and Altera will help UI Health Care with the medical record transition to Epic Systems, the University’s current electronic medical records software system.

'Spirit of hospitality'

While UI Health Care will continue the tradition of care that Mercy provided for the community, the previous connection to the Sisters of Mercy will not continue. “We're really trying to continue the spirit of hospitality that was so important to this campus for so many decades,” Dr. Jamieson said, adding that there are plans to install an inter-denominational chapel and reflection space in the future. Dr. Jamieson, who joined the UI Health Care team on Aug. 1, 2023, said the personal challenge of helping steer the hospital acquisition is exciting. “I was previously part of a large complicated matrix health system,” she said, “and it's really fun to be able to bring those skills here.” Prior to her role at UI Health Care, Dr. Jamieson was the chief of gynecology and obstetrics for Emory Healthcare and former Center for Disease Control and Prevention head, and was also a professor in the department of epidemiology in the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory. Dr. Jamieson said part of the challenge of adding a new facility is providing access to health care in an organized, structured way, utilizing UI Health Care’s many affiliate medical centers to ensure patients receive high-quality care. To maintain the quality of care, UI Health Care created separate bylaws to govern the University’s hospital on the main campus, and the one downtown. The bylaws have certain stipulations for medical practitioners. To practice at University of Iowa campus, a practitioner must also be a faculty member. Conversely, the downtown campus will have an open medical staff that will include community providers and faculty members. “We expect that there will be people who will be both practicing at (the) University campus, as well as here,” said Dr. Jamieson, citing the possibility of staff crossover. For now, she said, patients can expect the same quality of care and a sense of familiarity. “Over the coming weeks, we will focus on welcoming our new colleagues, maintaining access, and providing continuity of care for patients,” said Mr. Haws, in a news release. “We remain committed to preserving Mercy Iowa City’s spirit of hospitality and we are actively listening to patients and community members to chart our path forward.”