By james art
By Alicia Rohan | UAB News
Effective November 1, 2024, the University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System Administration assumed ownership of the Ascension St. Health System. Vincent in central Alabama to maintain patient access to the highest quality care in Birmingham and the surrounding communities.
After extensive research and due diligence, UAB announced in June that the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees had approved an agreement with Ascension to seek the necessary approvals and work to satisfy the closing conditions.
Under the agreement, UAB Health System Authority assumed ownership of all Ascension St. care facilities. Vincent, including Birmingham, Blount, Chilton, East and St. Clair hospitals, as well as One Nineteen Campus, Trussville Freestanding Emergency Department and Imaging Centers and other clinics that are part of Ascension Medical Group. The transaction includes Ascension St. services, facilities, caregivers and associates. Vincent, including a robust network of suppliers serving the region.
The former St. Vincent Care and Operations facilities are now officially UAB St. Vincent.
“We are thrilled to welcome St. Vincent’s patients, caregivers and associates to the UAB Medicine community,” said UAB Health System CEO Dawn Bulgarella. “We are grateful and excited about how well this acquisition has been received by patients as well as the teams at St. Vincent’s and UAB. I look forward to seeing how combining these two great health systems improves patient access to a broader network of care, creates exciting opportunities for our people and makes Alabama’s health care system more sustainable.”
Patients at UAB St. Vincent will continue to have access to the health services and providers they have come to trust, and will also gain access to a larger network of care. The goal of the transition team, made up of team members from UAB, Ascension and St. Vincent, was to make the transition smooth for the patients, caregivers and associates of UAB St. Vincent, as well as to the broader UAB Medicine team and the communities both health systems serve.
“Significant effort and dialogue has gone into this effort, and Ascension has been a great partner throughout, demonstrating a shared commitment to a smooth transition for all we serve,” Bulgarella said. “We exist to improve lives, and that purpose will continue to guide our actions.”
At a time when hospitals are closing across the country, UAB Health System has made it a priority to strengthen Alabama’s hospitals, support care providers, and increase community outreach and services through innovative partnerships that improve the state’s health care ecosystem.
“Today we celebrate the beginning of an exciting, more sustainable new era of health care in Alabama,” Bulgarella said. “We look forward to investing in our people, facilities and systems to enhance the experience of caregivers, associates and patients at UAB Medicine and UAB St. Vincent’s.”
Ray Watts, MD, who chairs the UAB Health System Authority board in addition to serving as UAB’s president, says UAB Health System is uniquely positioned to deliver on this commitment to sustaining patient and employee success.
“The UAB Health System is recognized as one of the best in the nation for innovative, world-class care for people, as well as among the best places to work in health care,” Watts said. “As an Alabama managed health system, we love, understand and meet the needs of our local communities, and we deeply respect this kind of commitment to the community and mission of Ascension St.’s caregivers and associates.” Vincent.”
This commitment is shared by the University of Alabama Board of Trustees and the System Office. During the June board meeting at which the agreement passed with unanimous support, UA System Interim Chancellor Sid J. Trant, who along with Bulgarella recommended the resolution for approval, said, “As you all know, the University of Alabama System and UAB Health System exist to improve the lives of Alabamians and beyond. This acquisition will go a long way toward achieving that goal and move the UA System toward fulfilling its vision of becoming the leading public higher education and health care system in the United States.”
