Exeter Hospital Hopes To Join 'Mass General Family'

EXETER, NH — In a proposal to build a new regional health care network, Exeter Hospital is looking to affiliate with Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The goal is to expand health services and make health care more collaborative along the Seacoast. A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled for next week.

As part of the proposal, a new nonprofit based in New Hampshire would serve as parent to Exeter and Wentworth-Douglass hospitals and will be part of the Mass General family. Exeter Health Resources CEO Kevin Callahan said the hospital's vision is to provide enhanced, expanded and advanced health care to the Seacoast.

"We proposed this affiliation to enable us to continue to provide incredible care to patients in our local community," said Callahan. "Through our current collaboration with Mass General for our oncology program — now 10 years strong — we see on a daily basis the kind of quality and expertise Mass General brings to our institution. Their clinical leaders collaborate so well with our outstanding local surgeons, specialists and primary care physicians and we look forward to expanding this relationship to further enhance the care we provide."

Wentworth-Douglass CEO Gregory Walker said that since joining the Mass General family three years ago, his hospital has added more specialized programs, including those for heart failure, women's hearth health and behavioral health, and has expanded its tele-health program in neurology. In October, Wentworth-Douglass also plans to launch Epic, a system-wide electronic medical system record, aiming to coordinate health care and provide a more seamless experience for patients.

"Our goal with the Mass General affiliation was to enhance care in the Seacoast — and that is what happened," said Walker. "We have increased access to care, added jobs and brought in more services. We also are adding more lower-cost urgent care and walk-in primary care locations instead of creating expensive new emergency rooms. With Exeter joining the family, this expanded relationship will allow us to strengthen and improve that care to reach even more of our Seacoast residents."

The proposal for the new network still needs approval from state and federal regulatory agencies, which are in the process of reviewing the proposal.

According to Exeter Hospital, poll results released last month by University of New Hampshire Survey Center showed that most Seacoast-area residents support the proposed new network. The poll, which included 600 participants, was conducted in July.

"There is strong public support for an affiliation between these three highly regarded hospitals," said Andrew Smith, director of the UNH Survey Center. "In particular, Seacoast residents think this proposed affiliation would improve care and provide better access to specialized care."

The public hearing on the proposal is planned for Monday, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Exeter High School, located at 1 Blue Hawk Dr. Thomas Donovan, director of Charitable Trusts, is hosting the meeting.

For more information on the proposed affiliation of Exeter, Wentworth-Douglass and Mass General, visit SeacoastHealthcareInitiative.org.