The recent increase in hospital employment and strategic affiliations with physicians can be beneficial to the hospitals with these relationships with physicians. However, other hospitals may suffer as a result of these arrangements. Hutcheson Medical Center in Fort Oglethorpe, Ga., is one of those hospitals. The hospital was left with only one cardiologist after Diagnostic Cardiology Group left the hospital in October. The remaining cardiologist recently announced he will stop taking call at the end of month. The hospital cited the strain of providing 24/7 cardiology coverage as the reason for his decision, according to a Chattanooga Times Free Press report.
Hutcheson will also soon lose the two physicians from Battlefield Pulmonary when that practice joins Memorial Hospital.
The hospital plans to bring in other providers, perhaps on a per diem basis, to cover these specialties.
Read the Chattanooga Times Free Press report on Hutcheson Medical Center.
Recommended Live Webinar on Jan 27, 2026 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM CST
