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EDINBURG — DHR Health has announced that it is unilaterally terminating the affiliation agreement between the two entities for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and ending its role as a teaching site for residents and fellows from the university.
Currently, that partnership with DHR supports 135 UTRGV residents and partners in a dozen programs. The hospital system says it honors its commitment to educating individuals over several years, and the university says most residents and fellows should graduate within that window. The University expects other institutions that have not completed on time to be accommodated without any problems.
UTRGV President Guy Bailey said the termination is not surprising and will not be very beneficial to the university’s operations.
Rumors that the partnership might dissolve have been reported to The Monitor as far back as September 2020, and Bailey says he knows the hospital system is debating ending the partnership.
A letter from him and UTRGV School of Medicine Dean Michael Hocker on Wednesday described the termination of the six-year agreement as part of the university’s “natural evolution.” “There is no question that our health care mission is no longer compatible with a for-profit, prescription-only health system like DHR Health.”
The main question for the university is where to place future residents and partners. The letter notes that UTRGV currently has affiliation agreements with three other hospitals in the Valley and is discussing other potential partnerships.
“We’re doing things right now that I think will allow us to take care of that number,” Bailey said Wednesday.
It is unclear exactly why DHR decided to end the partnership. Bailey said no specific reason was given, and the hospital system was not disclosed.
“Our primary mission is to ensure quality medical education in the Rio Grande Valley,” the hospital’s statement said. “DHR Health will continue to support medical education through our own hospital education programs or through partnerships with other academic institutions.”
The spokeswoman did not respond to questions about what led to the termination or whether DHR Health had any concrete plans to partner with another university’s medical school.
The UTRGV School of Medicine is set to continue to grow without a partnership with DHR Health. The termination announcement comes four days before the university is scheduled to break ground on a new $145 million, 144,000-square-foot cancer and surgery center.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center provided oncology consulting services during the development and initiation of that program.
A break with DHR will force some changes. In the letter, the university is notifying the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, which accredits residency programs, and said it will work with the organization’s Institutional Review Committee during the transition.
Currently, patients seen by a UTRGV-employed physician at DHR Health will not see any immediate changes, but those services will gradually transition to the university location.
A stand-alone medical research building at DHR Health, leased to the university through a public-private partnership, will not be affected by the termination, Bailey said. “We’re going to continue to do research there, we’re going to continue to be there,” he said, describing that space as a great success.
Bailey and Hawker’s letter describes the partnership — while it lasted — as a triumph.
“It’s the successes that have impacted our lives and the programs that we’ve sponsored that have helped us reach this next level,” he said. “We are grateful for the consideration of the DHR community and appreciate the educational opportunities provided to UTRGV resident physicians and our partners through the partnership, and we wish DHR Health nothing but the best in their future endeavors.”
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