Doylestown Health Agrees To Become Part Of Penn Medicine

DOYLESTOWN, PA — Calling it an historic moment, Doylestown Health President and CEO Jim Brexler joined leaders of the University of Pennsylvania Health System on Wednesday in signing a definitive agreement for the Bucks County health system to become part of Penn Medicine.

Pending final federal and state approvals in the months ahead, the systems plan to integrate clinical care and operations by early 2025, as well as working to develop new programs and enhanced services across four sites of care – in hospitals, outpatient facilities, in the home, and via telemedicine.

“The joining of Doylestown Health into Penn Medicine will allow both organizations to provide the highest quality, cost-effective care, right where patients need it,” said Brexler. “In bringing together Doylestown Health’s unique brand of care delivered with compassion and expertise and the world-renowned, ground-breaking care that is synonymous with Penn Medicine, we strengthen each organization’s ability to provide the healthcare our communities need and deserve.”

Doylestown Health, which celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding last year, is a not-for-profit, clinically integrated network of care from childbirth to end-of-life. As the flagship of Doylestown Health, the hospital provides access to specialists, advanced treatments, minimally invasive surgical procedures, clinical trials, and patient-centered care in state-of-the-art facilities.

Signing the agreement are Jonathan Epstein, MD, Interim Executive Vice President at UPHS, and Marianne Chabot, board chair, Doylestown Hospital and Doylestown Health Foundation. (Photo by Jeff Werner)

The roots of Penn Medicine also run deep, reaching back more than 270 years. The institution started the nation's first children's hospital, the first medical school in the nation, and the first teaching hospital. Throughout its history, it has made significant contributions to medicine, but even more so in recent decades.

“You’ve given us a wonderful gem. We’re going to polish it and make it shine brighter than it ever did before," said UPHS CEO Kevin B. Mahoney. "We are not a health system where we take from our providers. We want to give to our community providers. No one wants to drive down the Schuylkill but sometimes you have to and when you have to we will be there. But we also want to bring the latest advances out to the suburbs.

“At Penn Medicine, we’re working to meet patients when and where they need us most,” said Mahoney. “The integration of Doylestown Health into UPHS will enable us to expand access to care by providing leading-edge treatments and novel therapies – services that patients might have to travel far from home to receive - within their communities. Through this strategy, we join the best of Penn Medicine with the best of Doylestown Health to give patients as many convenient pathways as possible to outstanding care and support.”

Upon completion of the approved transaction, the two organizations said they will build upon their current collaborations. Penn Radiation Oncology at Doylestown, for instance, opened in 2011 and delivers care for more than 400 patients each year. For more than a decade, Doylestown Hospital has been part of the Penn Cancer Network, a select group of hospitals and physician practices throughout the greater Philadelphia region collaborating with Penn Medicine's Abramson Cancer Center to provide expanded access to treatments and clinical trials.

Kathleen Krick, the president of the Village Improvement Association of Doylestown, which founded Doylestown Hospital a century ago and continues to have a role in governing the organization, said its members have had a lot of discussions and have taken part in a lot of meetings "to get to this moment.

"This is not a decision we approached without understanding the significance of what we are about to do," said Krick. "This hospital's incredible history began in the hearts and mind of a group of women who had the fortitude and grit to see a problem and to take it on themselves to solve. Like these amazing women, we at the VIA are deeply dedicated to this ideal ... This is why we are so proud to take this momentous step forward as Doylestown Hospital embarks upon the next 100 years.

From left, UPHS CEO Kevin Mahoney, UPHS Interim Executive Vice President Jonathan Epstein, Village Improvement Association President Kathleen Krick, Doylestown Hospital and Doylestown Foundation board chair Marianne Chabot, and Jim Brexler, President and CEO of Doylestown Health. (Photo by Jeff Werner)

"Like those women before us were working to bring innovation and resources to our community, we are so pleased to become a part of Penn Medicine, an organization that shares our values and is equally committed to having access to superior health care in the community they serve just as our founders intended," said Krick. "This is the next step for us."

Added Marianne Chabot, who chairs the boards of both Doylestown Hospital and the Doylestown Health Foundation and is the vice president of health services for the VIA, "I can think of no better way to ensure that future then to join an organization who like us is dedicated to compassionate care, committed to excellence, and to the people who make it possible. I’m relieved and I’m very proud that everyone at Penn saw in us the unique qualities that will not only strengthen and secure the future of Doylestown Hospital but add something incredibly wonderful to your organization."

Mahoney likened the joining of the two health care organizations to a marriage. “You don’t get married for operational efficiencies. You get married for love, respect, and to get through the hard times together," he said. “As we come together as organizations we will eke out operational efficiencies but mostly I want it to improve patient care. I want it to improve our community. This is our prenuptial agreement with this signing but we’ll have a bigger party six months from now when we are officially good to go.”

Pending regulatory approvals, Doylestown Hospital would become the seventh Penn Medicine hospital. In addition to its three Philadelphia hospitals – the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, and Pennsylvania Hospital – Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, and Princeton Health are part of UPHS, having joined in 2013, 2015, and 2018, respectively.