Saint Peter’s Healthcare System to Explore Strategic Partnership or Affiliation

On Oct 10, 2018

New Brunswick-based Saint Peter’s Healthcare System announced it will explore options for a potential strategic partnership or affiliation through a request for proposal process. The healthcare system is the parent company of Saint Peter’s University Hospital, a 478-bed acute care teaching hospital, serving the community for 111 years through its Catholic healthcare ministry.

The healthcare system’s board of governors and senior leadership, in collaboration with the Reverend James F. Checchio, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen, have been involved in an extensive strategic review for over a year. This discernment process has involved a comprehensive and detailed analysis of Saint Peter’s, its Catholic mission, the competitive market, and broader industry trends.

Nationally, the hospital and healthcare industry has been in a period of rapid transformation. During the past several years, New Jersey hospitals have experienced unprecedented consolidation resulting in the formation of a number of larger hospital/healthcare systems with significant market and economic scale. Saint Peter’s now is the only independently operated hospital/health system in Middlesex County.

The process of identifying potential partners will begin this month with no specific timing as to when and if the organization ultimately will decide to establish a strategic partnership or affiliation, according to Leslie D. Hirsch, interim CEO and president of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System.

“We have an obligation to be good stewards in planning for Saint Peter’s future,” Hirsch said. “Through the RFP process, we will evaluate possible options, with a focus on finding a strategic partner or affiliate that would allow Saint Peter’s to retain its Catholic mission and identity, remain competitive in the changing healthcare environment, and yield the best possible outcome for its patients, employees, medical staff and the communities we serve.”

“Bishop Checchio has been very supportive during the discernment process and has accepted the recommendation of our board of governors to pursue a strategic partnership or affiliation that would honor Saint Peter’s longstanding commitment to those entrusted to our care,” said Hirsch.

While it is too early to determine specific outcomes of any potential partnership or affiliation, Hirsch noted that Saint Peter’s will continue to provide high quality patient care, and invest in new clinical programs and services during the strategic partnership review process.

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