UK HealthCare

UK HealthCare has pioneered a new paradigm in the provision of specialty care in the community. Rather than competing for market share, UK HealthCare is sharing best practices and supplying state-of-the-art care with clinics in 20 medical and surgical specialties at community hospitals and regional medical centers across eastern Kentucky, to meet the needs of rural patients and to insure the stability of the rural health care network. With nearly 150 clinical outreach practices, these relationships have linked UK HealthCare with community hospitals totaling approximately 4,500 beds.

UK's Markey Cancer Center (MCC) has advanced this paradigm with a formal affiliation status through the Markey Cancer Center Affiliate Network that makes available a menu of Markey services in affiliates' facilities.

Initiated in 2006, the MCC Affiliate model translates the academic medical center environment of clinical practice, education, and research to the community setting. In addition to on-site oncology clinics, Markey provides: (1) chemotherapy nurse training and certification through the Oncology Nursing Society, complemented by MCC certification and on-site follow-up visits; (2) community education and health fairs for cancer prevention; (3) capacity for screenings for cancer control; and (4) access to behavioral research protocols. Mechanisms to provide access to clinical trials are now under study.

UK HealthCare now has four affiliate networks in cancer, pediatrics, stroke and transplant. A newly emerging cardiology network through the UK Gill Heart Institute is under development.