Life Point is a publicly held, (NASDAQ: “LPNT”), hospital corporation with a network of 50 hospitals across the country. Our model is to operate in small – to medium size cities in generally rural areas. We are financially sound, fiscally responsible, and well respected in the medical community. Throughout our history, our sole mission has been to develop strong community-based hospitals in non-urban markets. In almost every case, each of the 50 Life Point hospitals located throughout the United States serves as the only acute-care facility in a community. My three hospitals have a high level of performance, solid reputations, financial stability, and a skilled management team.
Dear Provider or Recruiter:
On behalf of Life Point Hospitals of Brentwood, TN, I am pleased to present our current physician offerings in our Western Region. Excellent opportunities exist in all three of our cities; Vernal, Utah, Price, Utah, and Elko, Nevada. These three areas are similar in many respects and yet very different in many other ways. Each community and medical staff offer their own unique style, culture, people, and personality. All three areas offer a superb blend of lifestyle, rewarding practice opportunities, state-of- the-art facilities and equipment, attractive financial upside, and most of all, quality medical providers.
You will find that these areas offer key things that most metro and suburban areas cannot, such as:
-Less stress than most other areas -Sunsets and sunrises that you can enjoy
-More personal and family leisure time -Spectacular scenery and nature
-Higher earnings than in metro and suburban areas -No pollution
-Allows you to work less than metro and suburban areas -A healthier lifestyle
-Less competition – bigger fish in a small pond -A higher quality of life
-More opportunities professionally -Better payor mix
-A happier family environment -Higher reimbursement rates
-More favorable malpractice environment -Clear skies and starry nights
-Much less risk of hospital and personality conflicts -More chances to customize your practice
I invite you to explore our portfolio of offerings and consider us. You will find practice profiles listed by specialty including suggested financial offerings, brief bios or backgrounds of medical staff members, information on the community and location, a sampling of photos from the towns, demographic data, hospital information, medical reimbursement / payor mix, state medical licensure information and time requirements to obtain licensure, and finally, links for various items of interest such as schools, dining, shopping, area events and attractions, recreation, etc. You will find that what we have to offer is refreshing, impressive, and worthy of your consideration as you choose a place to practice. So take a few moments to research us, then call me at anytime to arrange a visit with us. I will be pleased to speak with you!
?ASHLEY REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER -VERNAL, UT?
The Practice Opportunities
-B/E, B/C, MD, DO, or FMG’s with strong skills communication are acceptable candidates unless noted otherwise.
- H-1 and J-1 Visa candidates are acceptable
-Pediatrics, OB-GYN, and Family Practice qualify as underserved areas for federal government loan repayment.
-2010 Residents and Fellows are also welcome and financial stipends are offered for every position.
-All positions can be private practice with either an income guarantee or W-2 salaried hospital employed positions.
-No husband and wife physicians teams – either the same or different specialties
-All candidates must be residing within The United States to be considered
Compensation and Benefits Package
If you are employed by the hospital employee than your compensation plan is based on Life Point’s compensation and benefits package which includes the following:
Major Medical Insurance – Individual and Family Options
Dental Insurance – Individual and Family Options
Vision – Individual and Family Options
Life Insurance – Individual and Family Options
Short and Long Term Disability Insurance - Options
401K Retirement Plan with contribution options and employee matching
Counseling and Support Services for Health Living, Personal Development, Family Care, Relationships, Everyday Matters, At Work
Flexible Spending Account and Dependent Care Account
Additionally, there are additional benefits that are offered by the local hospital and vary by location
Salary Amount, Length of Contract, Relocation Allowance, Signing Bonus, Stipend, and Student Loan Repayment, Paid Time Off, CME Time and CME education allowance are Negotiable And Will Be Discussed Individually
- Family Practice – Because of large community growth and the retirement of a part time FP, we are looking to bring on a Family Practice physician. Physicians are booked out far in advance. There is a large volume of work available. A competitive income guarantee will be offered as well as overhead expense allowance. The opportunity is to join the community with a solo private practice and sharing call with the five others. We do have the MSO to support them from a practice management standpoint. Call is 1:6. Relocation Paid and possible sign on bonus. 2010 candidate is acceptable too.
- Neurology – Opportunity is for a physician to establish a solo private practice with competitive gross hospital income guarantee plus all overheard expenses paid. Could also be a salaried W-2 employed position with full benefits package including paid mal practice, cme, time off, major medical, dental, vision, 401K, etc. Sign on bonus negotiable. A candidate who was fellowship trained in stroke, epilepsy, or sleep EMGG, would have to be willing to do general neurology and also recognize that there is not enough of a population to support doing too much specialization. Digital remote work can be done.
- Internal Medicine-Internal Medicine physicians needed to join community. Call 1:4, not a hospitalist position, but a traditional in and out patient position. Could be employed or independent contractor. The opportunity is for a physician to establish a solo private practice with competitive gross hospital income guarantee plus all overheard expenses paid. Could also be a salaried W-2 employed position with full benefits package including paid mal practice, cme, time off, major medical, dental, vision, 401K, and other benefits. An attractive sign-on bonus is available as well as well as relocation. Student loan repayment is an item for discussion as well.
- Pediatrics – Join a very well known and very respected SSG whose senior partner built Nightime Pediatrics and is a real visionary. He is the senior pediatrician in the community and we are recruiting into his practice. They are seeing up to 60 patients a day. This peds position does require C-Section and Delivery call coverage. We have a Level 2 Nursery. They are doing sick care, well care, urgent care, newborns, delivery, immunizations, laceration repair, and chronic health care. The clinic has a well waiting room and play area, a sick waiting room and play area, 10 exam rooms, procedure rooms, tele-radiology 24 hours, and child friendly rooms with TV’s. Dr. Pollary is looking to retire in 4 years and wants to build the next generation of docs to service his patients and the community. This position is an ownership position in the clinic with Dr. Pollary hospital. The hospital is paying relocation and a sign-on bonus and the group is providing the salary plus productivity bonus. The overall package including salary is in the $170K range. The malpractice is paid; there is a benefits package that includes paid health, dental, and life insurance. There is also call coverage differential, loan repayment is to be discussed. We need at least one pediatrician IMMEDIATELY. Call will be 1:3 – 1:4. Strong referral patterns established. One of our Pediatricians just decided to focus his attention on Indian Health Services so we are looking for his replacement.
Our Hospital
Ashley Regional Medical Center is a beautiful facility featuring state-of-the-art technology. The hospital
has 39-beds, 3 OR’s, and is an acute care Joint Commission Accredited facility. Named one of
America’s Top 100 Hospitals in 2002 by Solucient and named LifePoint’s “High Five Hospital” in 2007—an honor given to the hospital with the best overall results in volume growth, quality measures, and constituency (patient, physician, and employee) satisfaction. It has scored high with:
90th percentile in inpatient satisfaction.
93rd percentile in emergency patient satisfaction.
94th percentile in employee satisfaction among 150 hospitals surveyed.
Scored best in the region for core measure compliance and has scored in the top 100 in the country for core measure compliance. (Core measures are the quality indicators used for Medicare). Rated EXCELLENT in maternity care outcomes measures and best in the region for pneumonia outcome measures.
The hospital cares for patients from the Tri-County area of Uintah, Duchesne, and Daggett counties as well as patients from the western slope of Colorado and even some from southern Wyoming.
Ashley Regional completed a two-phase construction project in 2004, which included an 18,000 square foot addition. The addition houses a new Emergency Room with 9 individual rooms, including two state-of-the-art trauma rooms. It also houses a new ICU unit with 4 individual rooms, and a complete new out-patient surgery area, including a larger operating room for large orthopedic and general surgery
cases. During Phase II of the construction project, the OB unit was renovated to include 3 delivery rooms and 5 individual postpartum rooms.
The radiology department was also expanded and completely renovated and is also now digital through a PACs system (except for mammography). A new expansion project was announced in August of 2007 and this will include a $7.2 million dollar, 22,000 sq foot two-story building that will house 6 new physician offices and a new registration area for outpatients. The addition will be completed in August of 2008 with some physician offices built out and available for occupancy in November.
Services available at Ashley Regional Medical Center include, MRI, CT Scan, mammography, nuclear medicine studies, 3-D ultrasound, Bone Densitometry, PH and mannometry studies, sleep studies, chemotherapy, physical and occupational therapy, respiratory therapy and a C.A.P. certified laboratory.
Ashley Regional Medical Center currently has 30 affiliated physicians. Specialties include family practice, internal medicine, pediatrics, radiology, pathology, orthopedics, ENT, general surgery, urology, OB/GYN, podiatry, ophthalmology and physiatry. The Emergency Room treats over 13,000 patients a year and is staffed 24-hours a day with a dedicated emergency room physician. Our newly renovated OB department delivers over 400 babies a year. Center recently finished an $8.2 million expansion that includes a new ICU unit, an outpatient surgery department and a 24-hour emergency room staffed with a dedicated emergency room physician and which treats 14,000 patients a year.
The new project, which will begin this fall, will invest $7.2 million in the facility, and brings to over $20 million the total investment in the hospital’s facility since 2003. The new project includes:
- A new 2-story medical office building which can house up to 12 physicians
- A new main entrance for the hospital
- A new registration area and information desk
- A new one-stop, pre-surgical area where patients can register and have outpatient diagnostic tests performed
- Space to house a future fixed MRI scanner
- A new gift shop for the Volunteer Auxiliary
- Renovation of kitchen and dining area
It will also include new office space. Earlier renovations, which began in 2003, invested $8.5 million in building a new 9-bed emergency room; new 4-bed Intensive Care Unit; a new pre-and post-surgical area; a third and larger OR suite; a new, large and well equipped radiology department with digital imaging storage and transmission; and a new and expanded OB department. This expansion was completed in 2005 and was the first part of a master facility plan that has multiple phases.
The facility has had reinvestment of over $20,000,000 in the past 7 years, demonstrating the long-term commitment to providing high quality and personalized healthcare to the Uintah Basin.
This next phase of the expansion will greatly enlarge and improve physician office space. The majority of the construction will be a new two-story Medical Office Building, which will house new physicians as well as better accommodate the 20% growth in the existing medical staff that has been experienced over the past seven years. Specialties that will be housed in the new office building include women’s services, Orthopedic Surgery, General Surgery, and Ear Nose & Throat surgery.
This new office building will allow additional physicians and physician specialties to meet the healthcare needs of the surrounding region as it continues to grow and expand.
Practice Assistance
A Management Services Organization (MSO) is available to physicians who want to remain independent, but who do not want to be bothered with the daily business functions of the practice. MSO services can be as minimal as a 25% discount on malpractice and receiving benefits at a discounted rate or a total package that includes billing and collection, personnel and payroll management, and business development. The MSO is named CarePoint and is not owned or related to the hospital, but works well with the hospital. The structure is designed to give the physicians freedom to run their own practice without having to handle all the management details that can be so time consuming.
For the hospital, based on charges for the full year of 2007, reimbursement was:
PPO: 26%
Medicare: 23%
Blue Cross: 21%
Medicaid: 9%
Self Pay: 9%
Commercial: 5%
Workers Comp: 4%
HMO: 3%
How long does it take to get a license in Utah?
At the time of this writing, in Utah, if an applicant has prepared their federal packet completely, and there are no outstanding issues, they typically can be granted a temporary license within 3 weeks and a permanent license in about 3-4 months. However these time frames can change unexpectedly due to the state’s work volume, policy changes outside of our control within the state medical license division, etc.
Utah – www.dopl.utah.gov – Cost is approximately $290
? Living In Our Area
Situated in a beautiful valley in northeastern Utah, Vernal is a place that abounds in both natural beauty and family-friendly living. Why Vernal? There’s something for everyone: hiker, hunter, rock climber, angler, camper, photographer, cross-country skier or snowmobile rider family friendly living and the best in small-town living with stunning scenery and abundant resources for the outdoor lover.
Incredible hiking trails are everywhere in Vernal and the region
Named one of America’s best small cities by in April of 2008, Outdoor Life Magazine picked Vernal as one of the “Top 100 Towns for Outdoorsmen in America. Great opportunities abound for obtaining larger pieces of property and having your privacy and solitude. The atmosphere is peaceful and quiet, the scenery is spectacular, and the air is clean. Vernal has very low crime, an excellent climate with higher than average temperature, more days of sunshine than the rest of the US. Vernal, the county seat of Uintah County, is a progressive city that recently won the America in Bloom award for its efforts to beautify the community.
Vernal allows you to maintain and enjoy a healthier, slower pace of life while still having access to cultural and social opportunities. Economically Vernal is in a growth cycle which is bringing new people into the community. This growth is allowing additional health care services to be provided locally; it has also attracted some larger chain stores such as Lowes and Staples. Three additional hotels were recently announced along with a business complex that will include a small shopping mall and theaters. A new branch campus of Utah State University is under construction; there are also several new housing developments underway and coming on line.
The economy is largely based on extraction – oil, natural gas, phosphates, coal (used for a power plant), and gilsonite. Tar Sand and Oil Shale development is also a part of the community growth as the world-wide demand for fossil fuels continues to grow. While there have been “booms and busts” previously in the history of Vernal, it seems that growth is here to stay for the foreseeable future.
The health of the local economy and its services is strong thanks in part to the energy boom. Vernal offers diversity, a favorable tax environment, a reasonable cost of living, and a local airport with commercial service. High Speed Wireless Internet connectivity is offered in Vernal.
Vernal features include low Medicare / Medicaid population, High population growth, and a rapidly growing local economy, plus shopping availability, (with the exception of high end department stores).
Vernal has a Population = 8,000, Uintah County is 24,500, the Service Area (about 45,000) is on the northern edge of the Colorado Plateau and south of Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area on the Utah-Wyoming state line. The elevation here is 5,322 feet. Vernal is located in a beautiful mountain valley about 200 miles east of Salt Lake City, Utah, and just a few miles west of the Colorado border. Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah are within 3 hours drive time.
The city offers many educational opportunities, beginning with a strong public school system. Utah State University has a branch campus that offers bachelor, master, and doctorate degrees. Uintah Basin Applied Technology College in partnership with USU and the College of Eastern Utah in Price offers LPN and RN degrees along with a myriad of other technical programs. There is one Public High School – size 4A. There is a junior high for 8th and 9th grade, a middle school for 6th and 7th grade and 5 elementary schools—two of which were built in the past 2 years.
Utah Field House of Natural History Museum lets you learn about the region’s dinosaur past. At Flaming Gorge Reservoir – choose from fishing, boating, camping, biking, hiking and more. Nearby National Parks allows you to enjoy the spectacular vistas and natural wonders of Arches, Canyonlands,
Capitol Reef, Zion, Dinosaur National Monument and many others. There are 23 miles of sandy shoreline and brilliant blue waters at Starvation State Park, a lake at 5,720 feet elevation.
Vernal Regional Airport offers commercial flight service to Denver twice a day. Golf and Country Club will test your skills in a scenic panorama like no other. So how does the Vernal UT real estate market look these days? Currently Vernal has a average listing price for homes for sale of $224,048. The UINTAH county average currently is $233,370.
The current number of properties on the market in Vernal is 152. The Vernal median listing price is $196,808.For UINTAH county real estate the total listings are 156 and a median listing price of $196,817. This compares to Utah real estate data, which this week shows a total number of listing properties as 15,594 with a median listing price of $244,125.
The city of Vernal hosts a popular Community Concert Series, which features performances by local musicians. The Outlaw Trail Theater performs original productions that bring the Wild West back to life. Vernal is also home to the nationally acclaimed Dinosaur Round-Up Rodeo and the national Professional Bull Riding Competition, ranked as one of the top 5 bull riding competitions in the world. The city’s Utah Field House of Natural History has several exhibits, including those dealing with
Triathlons, Marathons, or casual running
The nearby Ute Indian Reservation is also a source of summer activities with regular events and pow-wows. Vernal is a veritable paradise for the outdoor enthusiast. Boating, fishing, hiking, white-water rafting, mountain biking, camping —whatever your outdoor passion, it’s all here. The Uinta Mountains, the highest in Utah, surround Vernal with hundreds of lakes and streams teaming with trout. Flaming Gorge Reservoir offers spectacular outdoor activities, including boating, fishing, camping, biking hiking, river rafting, and kayaking. The Green River provides blue-ribbon trout fishing and exciting white-water rafting. Nine-Mile Canyon features a breathtaking corridor of Fremont Indian petroglyphs and pictographs. Dry Fork Canyon, Jones Holes and Echo Park also feature these spectacular drawings. Vernal is dinosaur country. Dinosaur National Monument offers one of the largest collections of Jurassic period bones and fossils as well as scenic highways, wilderness areas and hiking trails. State parks at Steinaker and Red Fleet Reservoirs (both within 10 minutes of town) provide modern campgrounds and wonderful opportunities for boating and fishing. Wildlife is plentiful in the area and include: bighorn sheep, moose, Rocky Mountain goats, elk, deer, pronghorn antelope, cougars, coyotes, golden and bald eagles and more.
Just 45 minutes north of Vernal is the nationally recognized Flaming Gorge Dam and Reservoir. You can enjoy the designated Scenic Route on Hwy 191 to this incredibly beautiful and pristine area of Utah. Biking, back packing and four-wheeling are also very popular in the area. On an annual basis, Vernal hosts festivals and rodeo celebrations as well as live local music. Throughout the winter months, Vernal teems with snow great for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. Vernal is a thriving haven for the outdoor enthusiast. A vintage of mountain biking trails pepper the rugged Uinta Mountains. Reservoirs, lakes and streams offer popular water activities such as boating, whitewater rafting and kayaking.
Just north of Vernal lies Flaming Gorge Recreation Center which hosts more than 2 million visitors a year. Neighboring state parks, including Steinaker and Red Fleet, also offer many of these activities. World-class fishing is also available throughout Vernal’s myriad of streams. Exploration via backpacking, hiking and camping are also prominent sports. Off-road and ATV trails are also available.
From high mountain vistas to the scenery of the desert, Vernal is an oasis of adventure and excitement in the ‘great outdoors’.
Green River rafting – one of the most exhilarating outdoor experiences you can have!
Ashley Forest to the north of Vernal. Ashley National Forest is located in northeastern Utah and Wyoming. It encompasses 1,384,132 National Forest acres, (1,287,909 in Utah and 96,223 in Wyoming). Of the total acres, 276,175 are High Uintas Wilderness. 180,530 additional acres of High Uintas Wilderness is located on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. Elevations on the Ashley National Forest range from 6,000 feet to over 13,500 feet.
If you want to get away from your clinic and practice, there is no better way than exploring on horseback.
Winter sports such as snowshoeing and snowmobiling opportunities abound here
Some of the greatest places to explore in the country are right here in our backyard!
Vernal is only 20 minutes away from the Dinosaur National Monument where you can touch a fossilized dinosaur bone still encased in the rock. Local culture includes the Outlaw Trail Festival and outdoor musical held each summer. Snowmobiling and cross country skiing locally. Downhill skiing in Park City and Steamboat—both 2 ½ miles away.
January Average Temperature: 30 degrees F
July Average Temperature: 72 degrees F
Annual Average Precipitation: 10 inches
? Schools and Colleges
Vernal’s schools include Ashley Valley Education Center, Uintah High, Vernal Junior High, Vernal Middle, Ashley Elementary, Discovery Elementary, and a branch of Utah State University. In 2007, Uintah School District built new buildings for two elementary schools, Maeser and Naples Elementary, in the nearby communities to accommodate increased enrollment and eliminate unsafe older buildings. Other area schools include Davis Elementary, Lapoint Elementary, and Eagle View Elementary.
- Student/Teacher ratio : Elementary 1:21
- Student/Teacher ratio : Middle 1:23
- Student/Teacher ratio : High School 1:25
- Elementary schools : 7, Secondary : 4
- 2001 Enrollment : 5938
- Estimated spending per pupil : $4700
» Links
Life Point Hospitals – www.lifepointhospitals.com
Ashley Regional Medical Center - http://www.avmc-hospital.com
City of Vernal – http://www.vernalcity.org
Vernal Info – www.vernal.com
Vernal Economic Development - http://www.vernalutah.org
Flaming Gorge Recreation Area - www.flaminggorgecountry.com
River Rafting – www.donhatchrivertrips.com
Dinosaurland Land -http://www.dinoland.com
Utah Travel – www.utah.com
Utah State University - http://uintahbasin.usu.edu
