WILLMAR -- Affiliated Community Medical Centers and Rice Memorial Hospital announced Monday that they have entered into a long-term agreement with Alexandria Orthopaedic Associates, P.A. to provide orthopedic care in Willmar.
Officials said they hope it will help resolve a long-standing shortage of orthopedic services in Willmar.
"We want to give the orthopedic coverage to the community. That's extremely important," said Dr. Ronald Holmgren, president and CEO of Affiliated Community Medical Centers.
Terry Tone, administrator of the regional multi-specialty medical center, called it "a huge need in this community."
The Alexandria group began seeing patients in Willmar last week and will be doing surgery at both Rice Hospital and the Willmar Surgery Center.
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Services will be ramped up to three or four days a week as soon as feasible. The partners also plan to recruit additional orthopedic surgeons to live and practice in the Willmar area.
The group is "excited about our invitation to collaborate closely with the medical community and Rice Hospital in Willmar," Dr. Paul Dale said in a written statement. "Willmar has always maintained a vibrant medical community and we are honored to now be a part of it."
Since spring, Willmar has been down to one orthopedic surgeon who is on the medical staff at Affiliated.
Rice Memorial Hospital tried twice previously to bring in one or two independent orthopedic specialists, but those efforts failed.
"We were looking for a fresh approach," said Lorry Massa, CEO of Rice Memorial Hospital. "We really think this has a huge amount of potential."
Holmgren said several options were considered, and clinic and hospital officials believed they might fare best by bringing in an orthopedic group that was already established.
"It's a different approach, doing a joint venture with an established group," he said. "We're excited about it. We think it's a high-quality group."
Alexandria Orthopaedic Associates was formed in 1973. The group consists of five orthopedic surgeons and three physician assistants.
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Their services include reconstructive surgery and total joint replacement. One of the surgeons is fellowship-trained in sports medicine.
It's hoped that more patients can now receive care locally for sports-related orthopedic conditions and injuries, Holmgren said.
An orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine has not been available in Willmar "for a number of years," he said. "That whole area is moving to the Twin Cities probably for their care."
Massa acknowledged that many patients have been going elsewhere because there aren't enough local orthopedic surgeons.
"I think it'll take some time to recapture that volume," he said.
