Kentucky Children’s Hospital, part of Lexington, Ky.-based UK HealthCare, has launched a statewide affiliate network to expand access to pediatric care through collaboration with community hospitals. The first official affiliate, Georgetown Community Hospital, joined the network in March.
The KCH Affiliate Network builds on UK HealthCare’s model of adult affiliate networks, which include the Markey Cancer Center Affiliate Network, the Gill Heart & Vascular Affiliate Network, and the UK HealthCare/Norton Healthcare Stroke Care Network.
“The vision of the KCH Affiliate Network is that no matter where a child is born geographically in the state, that they will have the same access to high quality pediatric care as those born in larger cities,” Kentucky Children’s Physician-in-Chief Scottie Day, MD, said in an April 30 news release. “A large demographic of the patient population we serve struggles with financial hardships and asking them to travel back and forth to Lexington is an additional burden on them. We know that it’s better for the patient and their family to remain closer to home and their support system.”
The affiliate network aims to support local hospitals and clinicians through education, training and access to KCH resources.
Benefits for affiliate hospitals include:
- Access to pediatric-specific educational lecture series in pediatrics and neonatology
- Customized, hands-on training at both KCH and local facilities
- Clinical shadowing opportunities with KCH care teams
- Access to KCH protocols, policies and best practices
- Continuing education credits
- Ongoing case review and transfer evaluation for quality improvement
