Mercy, Cox confirm vision for children's hospital in Springfield. Here's what we know

Springfield's two hospital systems confirmed that they are looking to build a children's hospital in the area during a listening session Wednesday night at Jarrett Middle School.

At the start of the event, the team shared its vision statement that both Mercy Springfield Communities and CoxHealth were looking to establish "a freestanding children's hospital to provide seamless specialty care for the children of our region."

Throughout the evening, the collaboration between the community and the health systems was highlighted. Mayor Ken McClure and Krystal Simon, CEO of Care to Learn, an organization that provides assistance meeting basic needs so children can succeed in school, were among panelists answering questions.

"We realized very quickly that this isn't something the two healthcare organizations can do on their own. It isn't something we can do to the community; it's something we want to do for and with the community," said Max Buetow, president and chief executive officer at CoxHealth.

More: Could a children's hospital be on Springfield's horizon? Maybe, says CoxHealth, Mercy

The listening session was also a form of accountability to the community.

"We're here to listen, we're here to learn. We're also here to make a commitment to the community that we're going to do this," Buetow said. "This isn't just something we're dreaming and scheming about any more; this is something we're going to make happen."

Current and former physicians, parents of children with complex health needs and other community members asked questions and shared their views on the prospective children's hospital that is still in very early stages.

Those who missed the listening session can still offer feedback through an online form at bit.ly/3Rm8FMP.

Why do they need a third party? Who will that be?

Buetow explained that even in early stages of Mercy and Cox discussing the children's hospital, it was apparent that a third partner would be needed to provide the best quality of care to kids in the area.

"We do pediatric care very well in this community, but it's not what we do all day, every day. We do a lot of adult care," Buetow said. "A children's hospital, and a third-party to partner with us, is something that does this repetitiously all day, every day."

In November, a request for proposal — an announcement about the project that asks for vendors or organizations interested in collaborating — was sent out for the children's hospital project. Already, there's been a lot of interest, said David Argueta, president of Springfield Mercy Communities.

During the event, leaders from both Mercy and Cox shared more information about what they were looking for in a pediatric partner — possibly one with academic affiliations — and that this project is unlike any other in the nation. While it's common for pediatric or academics to come together with health systems, the group is unaware of a case where two health systems are coming together, explained Marie Moore, Mercy's chief nursing officer.

"As we started diving into some of this work, we were looking for that best practice. We were looking for a like situation to learn from. What we continually hear was that it was very unique for two healthcare systems to come together and seek out a third party," Moore said. "What we saw across the country or what you would find more commonly was one healthcare entity seeking out another children's expert. It is exciting, and maybe a little bit uncharted with the nature of this."

More: A pandemic-era brainstorm has become 'the highlight of my career,' says CoxHealth VP

What will the hospital include?

This early in the process, the services offered by the children's hospital are not set in stone.

However, the team has a good idea of what they want to see, especially Dr. John Burson, regional service line chair for women and children at Mercy Springfield Communities, and Dr. Kofi Asare-Bawuah, medical director for children’s services at CoxHealth.

After looking at what specialists they currently have and what specialties they refer out for most, Burson listed pediatric dermatology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology and surgery as some of the most-needed or most difficult to access services.

"I think there is a lot we don't know simply because we don't have a partner yet and we've not figured out what it will look like. ... So I'll tell you what I want to see. Our goal is to care for kids in our area with any kind of complex medical issue," Asare-Bawuah said. "All the patients are going to get 80% to 90% of their care here. Say some complex medical issues like bone (marrow) transplant or complex surgery, we may not be able to do that here. But 80% to 90% of their care — all their subspecialists — is going to be local."

The doctors also expressed a desire to have clinics for children with complex needs, such as Down syndrome or cerebral palsy. A Down syndrome clinic could not only have a pediatric neurologist, but also a pediatric cardiologist, ophthalmologist and gastroenterologist to address the health challenges often associated with the genetic condition. Clinics like that would allow patients to streamline their care and reduce the number of trips that need to be made.

Burson also explained that the pediatric care would not be limited to hospital services and would include "wrap-around" services as well, including disciplines like occupational and physical therapy as well as home health services such as equipment.

More: 'Hope and healing': Mercy breaks ground on emergency department in south Springfield

Will there be enough demand to make this project worthwhile?

Amidst the excitement and gratefulness, a question was raised: Does the community have enough demand to support another hospital, even one that would draw from surrounding areas?

The Mercy and Cox team are confident that it can.

Preliminary research for the pediatric project showed that at least 30% of children and families who need care for their child are holding off on that care or not getting that care, Argueta said.

According to the American Hospital Association, there are about 6,100 hospitals across the United States. About 220 of those are pediatric or children's hospitals, according to the Children's Hospital Association. Argueta estimates that Mercy and Cox serve about 250,000 children in the area.

"There absolutely is an opportunity to have a meaningful impact building something like this in our area," Moore said. "When you look across our state as well as southeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas, there absolutely is a gap and that is a lot of the focus and passion behind our mission is we know what the kids in our community and our region need."

Susan Szuch reports on health and local food for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Community shares questions, views on Cox, Mercy children's hospital