Conway Regional to manage Dardanelle hospital

Conway Regional Health System will assume management of Dardanelle Hospital, formerly known as River Valley Medical Center, effective June 1. The hospital operations going forward shall be known as Dardanelle Regional Medical Center.

In March, the Yell County Board of Governors of Dardanelle Hospital of Yell County reached a preliminary settlement agreement with Allegiance Health Management (AHM) of Shreveport, La.

This preliminary settlement agreement addressed AHM’s lease termination of the county facility. Months prior to this settlement agreement, the Board of Governors contacted Conway Regional to gauge potential interest should a settlement agreement be reached.

AHM previously leased the hospital facilities in an agreement that was to expire in 2022, prior to the Yell County Board and Allegiance Health Management mutually agreeing to terminate their lease relationship.

“Our two hospitals share a mission of providing quality health care to the communities we serve. First and foremost, our focus is to be encouraging and supportive for a vibrant future for the Dardanelle community,” said Matt Troup, president and CEO of Conway Regional Health System.

“As we enter into this management arrangement, our primary objective in the early days is to ensure we safely provide patient care. We will assess any areas in Dardanelle Regional Medical Center that need support and will provide that, beginning with the Emergency Department and the Dardanelle Family Clinic, which will combine the former Primary Care Practice at 215 N 4th Street with the outpatient clinic at the Medical Center,” Troup added.

Hospital officials said the medical team in Dardanelle will continue to provide patient care. As a part of the transition, Conway Regional Chief Operating Officer Alan Finley will oversee operations as the site administrator at Dardanelle Regional Medical Center.

The initial term of the management agreement with Conway Regional Health System is through Dec. 31, 2019, with the intent to develop a long-term management arrangement between the Dardanelle Board of Governors and Conway Regional Health System.

The renaming of the Dardanelle hospital took effect June 1. The 35-bed medical center employs a staff of more than 100 medical professionals. The Dardanelle Regional Outpatient Clinic and Dardanelle Regional Family Clinic have combined to form the Dardanelle Regional Medical Clinic and will be managed by Conway Regional Health System.

The hospital was founded on March 21, 1965 as Dardanelle Hospital and was a 26-bed facility at that time.