PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — Carle Health announced it is welcoming the former UnityPoint Health and the Methodist College into its system Monday, expanding its’ Central Illinois footprint into the Greater Peoria region.
On April 1, a number of entities that were formerly part of the UnityPoint health system became a part of the Carle Health System. The specific entities are:
- Methodist Medical Center of Illinois
- Pekin Memorial Hospital
- Proctor Hospital
- Proctor Health Systems
- UnityPoint Clinic
- UnityPoint Health Junction Medical, LLC
- Unity Place
- Human Service Center
- Tazwood Mental Health Center, Inc. d/b/a Tazwood Center for Wellness
- Health Plus, Inc.
- Pekin ProHealth, Inc.
“Being part of a health system that’s right here in down-state Illinois where we wake up thinking about the same community, we interact with the same state government, we have the same regional challenges, and regional strengths, means we can build something together,” said President of Carle Health Greater Peoria Keith Knepp.
The union will bring three hospitals with 634 beds, more than 850 multi-specialty physicians, 76 clinics, a level-two trauma center, and many other services into the Carle Health team.
With no employee lay-offs, and no change to patient insurance, the only difference people will see is the name change and increased medical resources.
“The result, I guarantee, will be a rich mosaic, mission-driven, patient-focused healthcare services, which extend and enhance into the community’s access around the quality of care. And not just today and tomorrow, but for generations to come,” said President and CEO of Carle Health, Dr. James Leonard.
Dr. Leonard said now physicians from the Urbana-Champaign, Bloomington, and Peoria areas can all collaborate together to enhance medical resources for the community.
“Through this process, we’ve found such a shared sense of purpose and it’s clear our partnership will enhance greater patient-centered healthcare in central Illinois,” Dr. Leonard said. “Our mission, vision, values, and culture align, establishing a foundation to extend excellence in the delivery of healthcare services for years to come. Our future is bright. Wherever a person’s health journey takes them, we will be there to help them through.”
UnityPlace will also see a name change to Trillium Place. The organization and services it provides will remain the same.
“We think it’s incredibly important to the community to have good behavioral health services, and we all know they’ve been stretched, not just with COVID, but prior to COVID,” said Dr. Leonard. “So part of our excitement is also the connection around behavioral health, what can be done, how it can serve families, and quite frankly, how it’s foundational to people’s health and well-being.”
Carle is also taking over the former Heddington Oaks building, which they call the Young Minds Project, to focus on mental health for the youth.
The center will act as a one-stop resource center for children and their families. Physician’s offices, crisis intake, and outpatient therapies will all be housed in a centralized location to support families when they receive treatment.
Currently, their health system has 22 designated beds for adolescent mental health inpatients. The center would drastically increase inpatient bed capacity. ICU and inpatient rooms will have their own wings with needs-based features.
The closing agreement took effect on April 1, marking the integration of these two prominent healthcare systems.
