The Eye of the Beholder

We know what they say about beauty, but we suspect it’s true of age, too. Fitch IBCA’s report explaining its rating on Washington Regional Medical Center’s $84 million bond issue notes that the average age of all doctors practicing at the hospital is “a relatively old 51 years.”

It’s probably all relative.

Other details about Regional’s physicians from the report, which was released too late to be included in a related story (See page 1), note that the hospital employs 14 physicians and “does not plan to acquire physicians in the future.”

That’s of particular interest since Mercy Health of Northwest Arkansas, which owns St. Mary’s Hospital in Rogers and cooperates with Regional in some areas, has acquired numerous physician practices in Benton County.

Of those doctors who do work for Regional, the system loses about $100,000 annually, which is about average nationally, Fitch IBCA notes. The company said it looked favorably on Regional’s low employment of doctors “as it has avoided the large losses that have plagued other hospitals across the nation.”