In the past year, Unity Health has seen exponential growth not only in its service area, but in the number of services offered through the organization. Based in Searcy, Unity Health is the leading health care provider in an eight-county area.
“We’re reaching into the community with the most advanced healing and the most advanced level of health centeredness in order to achieve the highest level of healing and maintenance of well-being,” said Ray Montgomery, president and CEO.
The very name underscores the mission: When White County Medical Center finalized the purchase of the Harris Hospital in Newport and its affiliated clinics in February, the resulting organization was renamed and rebranded Unity Health in order to represent the organization as a whole.
The new health system wasted no time driving a stake in the ground as a major player in Arkansas. Responding to priorities identified through Community Health Needs Assessments over recent years, Unity Health launched on July 1 its Graduate Medical Education program which trains physician residents in osteopathic medicine within three specialties: internal medicine, psychiatry and family medicine.
The program has 16 resident physicians and Montgomery said the internal medicine program is expected to increase up to 30 residents, the family medicine program to 12 residents and psychiatric medicine to 16 residents within the next few years. It is also the desire and plan of Unity Health to increase the number of specialties offered through the program.
“The [graduate] program is estimated to increase psychiatrists and internal medicine physicians going into practice in Arkansas by 50 percent,” Montgomery said.
In addition to training psychiatrists, Unity Health is answering the needs of behavioral health services by recently opening an outpatient behavioral health clinic, Unity Health-Clarity Health and Wellness, and an adolescent behavioral health unit, Unity Health-Courage. Courage, a short-term, acute inpatient program, is designed for students ages 12-17 with emotional or behavioral issues.
“Behavioral health is a growing epidemic in America and there is a greater need for behavioral health services,” Montgomery said.
Growth is also foreseen in ambulatory care and patient-centered medical homes as Unity Health’s services and service areas continue to grow.
“The organization bases its care on a unique customer service style with emphasis on caring, responsiveness, individual attentiveness and personalization, which achieves the most ideal environment for healing,” Montgomery said.
Highlights/Awards
» Merger of White County Hospital in Searcy and Harris Hospital in Newport created the new health system Feb. 1, followed immediately by re-naming and re-branding as Unity Health
» In July, Unity Health launched its Graduate Medical Education, training physician residents in osteopathic medicine within three specialties including internal medicine, psychiatry and family medicine
» Future plans include even more aggressive community-based care delivery options
» Two-time recipient of the Arkansas Governor’s Quality Award
» “A” Grade Safety Score from The Leapfrog Group, one the nation’s leading patient safety experts
» Ranked in top 1 percent in the U.S. by Consumer Reports Magazine for preventing specific infections and diseases
» Inpatient Quality Award from the Arkansas Foundation for Medicare, placing system in top 3 percent in state
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