KALONA

When Mercy Iowa City hospital filed bankruptcy in late 2023, the fate of the Kalona health clinic, Mercy Family Medicine, was thrown into question. UI Health Care acquired the clinic in January 2024, but its future remained uncertain, as it was unclear whether the University had a long-term interest in the facility.

An announcement made March 27 set the course: UI Health Care will sell the Kalona clinic to Washington County Hospitals and Clinics (WCHC) pending approval by the Iowa Board of Regents.

“UI Health Care and WCHC have a long history of collaborating to care for the residents of Washington County,” Denise Jamieson, MD, UI vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean of the Carver College of Medicine said. “Both organizations are committed to preserving access to care and making sure patients get the right care, at the right place, at the right time. WCHC’s proposed purchase of the Kalona clinic presents a unique opportunity for collaboration while maintaining care options in Washington County.”

The Kalona clinic will add to WCHC’s facility portfolio, which includes a critical access hospital, Family Medicine Clinic, McCreedy Medical Clinic and Beans Pharmacy in Washington and a clinic in Columbus Junction.

UI Health Care will continue to serve Kalona and Washington County residents through its Riverside clinic location and provide specialty outreach services at WCHC, including OBGYN, midwifery, urology, electrophysiology, dialysis, and emergency care.

“We are proud of our 100-year legacy of providing healthcare services to Washington County and surrounding community residents,” Todd Patterson, CEO at WCHC, said. “Kalona is an important community in our primary service area, and we are excited for the opportunity to expand access to our outpatient services for its residents and a continued collaboration with UI Health Care.”

The Kalona clinic will not be the first for WCHC; from November 2015 to June 2018, a WCHC clinic in Kalona saw patients, but the volume was too low to sustain the practice.

Kalona’s population has since grown 11%.

WCHC has also experienced exponential growth in recent years, adding 15 new providers in the last five years and seven new service lines, including endocrinology and surgery. For the second year, WCHC has been recognized as a top 100 critical access hospital in the nation, and it was recognized this year as one of the coolest places to work in the corridor.

The hospital is responsible for close to 600 jobs in Washington County.

“We are incredibly grateful for the outstanding family medicine providers who joined UI Health Care during the Mercy Iowa City transition,” Jeffrey Quinlan, MD, chair and DEO of family medicine at UI Health Care, said. “Our hope is that the providers and staff at the Kalona clinc will transition to UI Health Care’s nearby clinics in Riverside and Williamsburg so they can continue serving residents in the surrounding area.”