August 16, 2013 — has merged its two employed physician practices into a single network to form Mercy Health Physicians.

The network includes 57 providers - primary care and specialty care - with offices in 20 locations across Lorain and Erie Counties.

According to Mercy president and CEO, Edwin Oley, "This model provides enhanced care to our patients, while opening new avenues for partnerships within the Lorain County physician community. This will allow for greater engagement and unity for our organization as a whole. It's a positive step for our physicians, our health system and most of all, our community."

Mercy Health Physicians will be led by a management team that includes Charles Butrey, MD, as the president and CEO. He is joined by Mark Rau as interim chief operating officer and a physician group advisory board. The board will be integral in their oversight of budgeting and planning, quality improvement and physician recruitment, along with identifying best practice standards and monitoring performance issues.

The following physicians have been appointed to serve on the Mercy Physician Enterprise Advisory Board:

Ismail Ahmed, MD, cardiology Dennis Carson, MD, family medicine
Vamsee Amirneni, MD, internal medicine Frank Hiti, MD, family medicine
James Andrasko, MD, surgery Nicholas Jarmoszuk, MD, gastroenterology
Bradley Barker, MD, family medicine Ilona Jurek, MD, family medicine
Kenneth Carbone, MD, family medicine Paul Murry, MD, infectious disease
Craig Recko, MD, family medicine

"This integration into a single physician model gives us the opportunity to work more closely to design and deliver the very best in care to patients in Lorain County," noted Dr. Butrey. "Many of our physicians have been serving our community for over 20 years. Our shared values made this an easy decision because we knew it was in the best interest of improving the health of the patients who trust us with their medical care. Since we have a single, dedicated physician network tied to Mercy, it gives us a strong base in which to recruit additional talented physicians to serve the healthcare needs of our region."

"We believe that this new structure will help Mercy as we navigate the anticipated changes and challenges of healthcare reform," explained Oley. "By having a single physician network that shares the Mercy vision of quality and service, we can deliver more accountable, patient-centered care throughout the community. This model will benefit all physicians in the region as we work cooperatively to achieve the highest standards of care for everyone who lives in Lorain County."

Patients who have received care from Mercy Tri-City Medicine and Mercy Medical Partners will continue to see their regular physicians. With the merger, the scheduling process will be streamlined and patients can continue to access their health information through an online health record system called MyChart.

"Because physicians are part of the same network, they will be able to better coordinate any specialty care and share critical information that will result in better patient outcomes," continued Dr. Butrey. "That is the goal for all of us - to work together to improve the health of everyone in our community."