Six short speeches were delivered in front of nearly 100 staff and community members, accompanied by lots of smiles and handshakes all around. This was followed by the celebratory unfurling of a banner from the second-floor balcony on Monday morning, symbolizing a new operator and a new name for the community’s healthcare facility: UCHealth Estes Valley Medical Center.
“I’d like to be one of the first to welcome staff of Estes Park Health to UCHealth,” said Kevin Unger, president and CEO of UCHealth’s northern Colorado Region. “I just want to tell you that our job here is to meet your needs so you can meet our patients’ needs better, flourish, and continue to provide the great care that everybody here needs, he said.
Unger acknowledged those who contributed to efforts to combine the healthcare systems, “From the very first meeting that we had, I knew that this was a special group. They had an eye on the goal of making sure that this hospital was sustainable for the long term and always had the best of Estes Park in mind at every turn. And I thank each and every one of the Board of Trustees, current, the former Board, and also the future Board for the work that you have put into making this day happen.”
Mayor Gary Hall spoke about the community’s long-standing desire for its healthcare system to remain independent.
“That world changed,” Hall said. “That world is no longer, and it’s so good to get here. UCHealth has been our friend for so many years. They have helped us in so many crises and in peaceful times, and done so much for us along the way. We’ve built this huge amount of trust with them,” Hall said. “I have great trust that they will do the right thing with our organization here, and we will have a healthy hospital.”
Other speakers were PHD Chair Cory Workman, Larimer County Commissioner Jody Shaddock-McNally, Chief of Staff Jennifer McLellan, and EVMC CEO Vern Carda.
As part of the transfer to the private not-for-profit organization, UCHealth has named a new advisory Board for its Estes Park operations. On the new Board are Steve Alper, current vice chairman of the Park Hospital District Board of Directors, David Batey, former Park Hospital District Board chairman, Sue Cooper, retired pharmacist and chair of the Estes Park Health Foundation, Christina Kraft, market president of Bank of Colorado Estes Park and chair of the Estes Park Economic Development and Workforce Council, Grace Taylor, vice president of operations, UCHealth Poudre Valley Hospital and UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies, Unger, and Janet Zeschin, secretary of PHD Board of directors.
The transfer of Estes Park Health to UCHealth, which has been in progress for over two years, was a closely guarded secret during the early negotiations between UCHealth and the Park Hospital District after voters gave their approval in May 2023 for the hospital to find a corporate partner who could provide healthcare services in Estes Park.
An acknowledgement that a tentative agreement had been reached was announced seven months ago, when the Board approved a resolution that effectively adopted the definitive agreement defining the partnership with UCHealth.