LANSING, MI – Sparrow’s partnership with University of Michigan Health is bringing expanded anesthesia services to Mid-Michigan, which translates to the ability to perform more surgeries in a timely fashion and improve access to care for patients.

Sparrow and U-M Health are bringing specialized anesthesia services to the area, such as those used for cardiac interventions, and working to expand Sparrow’s anesthesia team. Having more anesthesiologists allows more operating rooms to be open and more procedures to be scheduled. For instance, Sparrow has opened an additional room in the Cath Lab, allowing us to perform procedures for cardiac arrythmias (irregular heartbeat) and other forms of heart disease quicker and with decreased wait times. There has been a general shortage of anesthesiologists, which has sometimes restricted surgical services.

“Our goal here is keeping care local and close to home,” said Paul Entler, D.O., Regional Chief Medical Officer, University of Michigan Health. “In order to do that, we need anesthesiologist services. It’s the foundation of future growth and sustainability as we try to reduce wait times for elective surgeries.”

Sparrow joined U-M Health on April 1 and the partnership has already yielded important results for patients and the community, including a plan to expand plastic surgery services. Many more improvements will be announced as Sparrow integrates with U-M Health in coming months.

For more information about the partnership, go to Sparrow.org/NewChapter.

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Sparrow is Mid-Michigan’s premier health care organization and includes hospitals in Lansing, Charlotte, St. Johns, Ionia and Carson City as well as Sparrow Care Network, Sparrow Medical Group, the Michigan Athletic Club, and AL!VE. Sparrow is part of University of Michigan Health. Through the dedication of our 10,000 caregivers, Sparrow pursues a vision to be nationally recognized as a leader in quality and Patient experience. For more information, visit Sparrow.org

Photo caption: (credit: Jackie Belden Hawthorne, MSU College of Social Science)
Margaret Dimond, regional president of University of Michigan Health, received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Michigan State University College of Social Science at a recent ceremony.