Christine Jordan Sexton
University of Florida (UF) Health and Jupiter Medical Center announced Tuesday plans to build new clinical facilities that will be jointly owned and operated. It is not clear when the new clinical facilities will be operational.
“We are seeking to expand our impact on the health and well-being of the residents of Palm Beach and Martin counties, bringing additional services to match the needs of patients in the area,” said David R. Nelson, senior vice president for health affairs at UF and president of UF Health.
“As an academic health center, we have assembled multi- and interdisciplinary teams whose focus is on addressing problems and devising solutions that may not be readily available elsewhere. Jupiter Medical Center already has a stellar track record of high-quality care, and together we will take health care to a new level.”
In addition to developing jointly owned clinical facilities, the release notes UF Health and Jupiter Medical Center also are set to begin discussions on the development of “novel clinical and hospital programs and service lines.”
Amit Rastogi, president and CEO of Jupiter Medical Center, called UF Health the “premier academic health system” in the state. In a prepared statement, Rastogi said the hospital was looking forward to the new partnership.
“We have a shared vision for innovation that encompasses state-of-the-art facilities, cutting-edge medical technology and the latest breakthroughs in artificial intelligence/data science to bring the highest quality care in a compassionate manner to each and every patient,” he said.
The press release trumpeting the partnership included no timelines, and Florida Politics’ requests for additional information were not immediately answered.
UF Health is the umbrella label for University of Florida academic campuses and medical facilities in Gainesville, Jacksonville and The Villages, among other cities. Jupiter Medical Center is a 248-bed hospital that, according to its website, offers specialty concentrations in orthopedics and spine care; cancer care and oncology; cardiac and vascular care; neuroscience and stroke care; women’s and children’s services; urgent care; and other key areas.
UF announced last year that UF Health and the Florida campus of Scripps Research were integrating and would operate under the moniker UF Scripps Biomedical Research. The integration was completed in April.
UF Health isn’t the only new academic entrance into the Treasure Coast health care market. Tampa General Hospital, which has been affiliated with the University of South Florida College of Medicine since it was first opened in the 1970s, announced in October 2021 a partnership with surgeons Daniel R. Higgins and Itzhak Shasha to launch TGH General Surgeons of the Palm Beaches.
In a statement announcing the partnership, TGH said the new launch provides “patients with improved access to surgical expertise and the innovation of an academic medical center within the Palm Beach and Treasure Coast communities.”
