OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois and University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria [UICOMP] will end their longtime affiliation with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in a major change for the regional destination healthcare provider.
For years, the St. Jude Midwest Affiliate Clinic has been based at OSF's Children’s Hospital of Illinois in Peoria, serving children with cancer and blood disorders. Starting June 30, OSF and UICOMP will begin delivering that care independently as the OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois Cancer and Blood Disorders Institute, in collaboration with U of I faculty.
An OSF statement described it as a "transition from the St. Jude affiliate network to operate independently."
"Patients remain at the forefront of these institutions’ efforts to advance treatment for childhood cancer and other pediatric life-threatening diseases. Additional information will be shared directly with families and patients to ensure continuity of care in the communities we serve," OSF said in the statement.
OSF: 'Next phase of evolution'
When asked Tuesday how the change was made, OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois President Meg Zakrzewski replied:
"This change has been thoughtfully discussed for a long period of time as we continue to evolve and grow as an organization," she said. "We are at this next phase of evolution as a children’s hospital, continuing on this journey for destination care, and we’re going to be able to continue to offer these excellent services with the same physicians that we’ve had for the past 40 years while continuing to expand our portfolio for care and really specialize in excellent care, high reliability and overall, where we’re going as a destination."
Zakrzewski said affiliate statuses are reviewed every year. When asked why the change was made now, Zakrzewski replied: "It was just a natural course and conversation as we're continuing on with destination care."
Zakrzewski noted OSF is the largest children’s hospital in downstate Illinois.
As OSF takes over an independent operation, families may naturally wonder if they would still receive charity care. Families who come to OSF not under the care of St. Jude will receive charity care of some kind, but Zakrzewski did not specify how they may qualify.
“OSF HealthCare provides $43 million in charity care every single year and over $603 million to the community overall,” she said. “We will always continue to serve with the greatest care and love and provide that care and that financial need when families have it.”
What will not change is the quality of care, OSF said. Dr. Brinda Mehta is division head of pediatric hematology-oncology.
“To be honest, I don’t think there will be a palpable change, because, again, we’re going to be, the staff members are going to be there when they walk through the doors, even July 1,” Mehta said. “It’s the same group and team. [Patients] are going to get the same level of diagnosis and staging or treatment needed.”
Mehta said the children’s hospital, in its collaboration with U of I, holds a staff of five full-time positions, two more in senior administration and four advanced nurse practitioners amid many other positions and departments. No departures are expected in response to OSF ending the affiliation.
“We have a robust team that is completely dedicated to our mission and our community and who we serve, and we are continuing to grow, adding physicians, adding nurses, adding to the children’s hospital overall,” Zakrewski said. “We truly are in growth mode here in Peoria which is an exciting time for the community and for our organization.”
Moving forward, St. Jude, OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois and UICOMP faculty may collaborate on specific clinical research studies to advance cures, OSF said.
“St. Jude remains committed to its mission to advance cures and means of prevention for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment," OSF said.
St. Jude's reaction
Dr. Ellis Neufeld is a hematologist and executive vice president covering affiliates at St. Jude. He’s based in Memphis, Tennessee, at the hospital’s central location.
He said he is disappointed with OSF’s decision to decouple from them but not necessarily surprised.
“We’ve been talking to them the last several months. As you may know, the OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital rebranded themselves last August … so, we’ve been talking to them since then about what that would mean and this led to a mutual decision over the last few months to conclude the affiliate relationship after more than 50 years,” Neufeld said.
Neufeld said affiliate relationships, of which St. Jude has six aside from Peoria and one clinic location, are important to the organization, but they must be a two-way street.
“There needs to be a buy-in of that affiliate-ness from the affiliate programs, and I think that OSF has decided they want to go in their own direction,” he said. “So, we need to keep supporting the patients and the mission as we go forward, but that’s their decision.”
Neufeld said the continuity of patient care is St. Jude’s top priority. Existing patients will receive the St. Jude affiliate model of care over the next three years. Patients at OSF as of July 1 would be considered OSF patients. A St. Jude spokesperson said the three transition years ensures that each patient can complete the full course of their active treatment, while patients enrolled in St. Jude's survivorship studies or participate in its therapy clinic, they would remain with St. Jude.
That leaves Central and Southern Illinois families with decisions to make about what their best course of action is for caring for their children.
The next closest locations are Springfield, Missouri, a nearly six-hour drive, or the Memphis, Tennessee, headquarters, a nearly seven-hour drive from Peoria. Those are the closest options for families to stay in the St. Jude umbrella.
“Let me make it clear that after June 30 our doors are unequivocally still open to the people of Peoria and Greater Peoria. We are happy to be available; we have fantastic resources, world-class cancer surgeons … if a patient from Peoria feels that we’re the best option for them, we are happy to take them [at another affiliate], can be [at Memphis or another St. Jude affiliate].” Neufeld said.
Neufeld said the other locations are not convenient for Peoria, but care is still available at OSF and other major cities. He said St. Jude will still facilitate the transfer of patients from another affiliate to OSF and vice versa, an agreement he hopes to finish soon.
Neufeld said OSF and St. Jude will still hold agreements to share research on cancer treatments.
St. Jude Runs
In response to the affiliation ending, a Central Illinois fundraiser for St. Jude has reaffirmed its commitment to the research hospital.
Mike McCoy, co-founder of St. Jude Runs, said the group’s dedication is as strong as it has ever been, and the commitment to the hospital will never change.
“It might affect the medical treatment of the patients a little bit, but I think the important thing for people to realize is that the fundraising is still going to go on for St. Jude in the Midwest and especially in Peoria where we’ve been active since 1962 raising funds,” McCoy said.
McCoy said he is still disappointed to hear of the split, but with the opening of a new fundraising office and dedicated volunteers, he expects to see advocacy increase for St. Jude.
“St. Jude is if not the leading, but one of the leading children’s research hospitals in the country,” he said. “They freely share their protocols with everybody, they don’t charge for travel, for meals, for housing."
Similarly, he does not expect any volunteers and donors to waver in their dedication to the organization.
“This is a St. Jude community; the Midwest is a St. Jude community. People are going to continue to give to St. Jude,” he said. “The telethon, the gala … we have 2,500 runners, we have 300 people that are riding motorcycles, we have 200 people in Corvettes … that are dedicated to finding a cure for child cancer and they’re going to continue to raise the money.”
McCoy said research funds will be sent to St. Jude in Memphis to assist in all their efforts as their central location, just as many other organizations do, and that will continue.
During the affiliation, some money would be allocated towards OSF as a local affiliate, but that is no longer the case. Now, some money will only be given to the fundraising office alone.
McCoy said he believes these changes surrounding money could impact medical decisions.
“There’s a lot of great places that they can get treated, and a lot of hospitals have affiliate relationships with St. Jude, and because there won’t be one in Peoria doesn’t mean that there’s not places where people can get treated close by,” he said.
McCoy said St. Jude Runs will always be focused on the best treatment for children.
