Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) and Penn Medicine announced that Mercy Catholic Medical Center—Mercy Philadelphia Campus has officially transitioned to the PHMC Public Health Campus on Cedar, an innovative and integrated public health campus designed to serve the West and Southwest Philadelphia communities. PHMC is the owner and operator of the property. Penn Medicine is managing the hospital emergency department, inpatient services, and hospital-based behavioral health programming as a remote location for the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), known as Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania—Cedar Avenue. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the Independence Blue Cross Foundation join PHMC and Penn Medicine as Coalition partners for the transformation.
The Coalition’s goals for the new public health campus focus on health equity and aim to provide the community with access to primary and behavioral health care, emergency services, acute care services, addiction treatment, and other social support services. The campus vision includes on-site PHMC programming, to include physical and behavioral health care and health promotion services. CHOP is exploring the option of offering inpatient psychiatric care and crisis response services, including a 20+-bed inpatient behavioral health unit, crisis center, and crisis support unit for children. Complementary campus services and offerings will be announced as plans are solidified in the coming months. In addition, the Independence Blue Cross Foundation will support the engagement of community-based, non-profit social services that address key issues, such as health and wellness education, food insecurity, and other activities.
In addition to managing emergency department care, Penn Medicine will provide onsite inpatient care as HUP—Cedar Avenue, leveraging Penn Medicine’s downtown Philadelphia hospitals’ clinical services and expertise, as well as telemedicine consultation. Emergency department services continued uninterrupted throughout the transition. The transition allows the Mercy Philadelphia workforce to continue its vital work engaging with and caring for the local community: All eligible employees have been offered employment with Penn Medicine with the same compensation and full benefits, and Penn Medicine plans to hire for a significant number of positions over the next few months to provide additional staffing in the facility.
Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic announced in early 2020 that it was transitioning this campus away from inpatient operations and shifting toward an approach better equipped to address the current and future needs of its neighbors. The coalition partners have been working closely with elected officials and community leaders over the past several months in preparation for the transition to ensure continuity of care.
This was reported by Public Health Management Corporation and Penn Medicine on March 25, 2021.
Contact information: Public Health Management Corporation, Centre Square East, 1500 Market Street, Suite 1500, Philadelphia, PA 19102; 215-985-2500; Fax: 215-985-2550; Website: https://www.phmc.org/site/contact-us
