SLV Health and Children's Hospital CO Form Care Alliance

Dr. Oleszek is a Children's Hospital Colorado specialist who will provide care in Alamosa at the SLVH RMC Pediatrics Clinic.

Alamosa, Colo. – June 3, 2024 – San Luis Valley Health (SLVH), the region’s largest hospital, and Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado), one of the nation’s top children’s hospitals, announced today they have entered into a Care Alliance, which is a collaboration across our organizations to provide children and their families with the highest level of coordinated medical care as close to home when possible.

“We’re very excited about the Care Alliance with Children’s Colorado,” said Antonio Gurule, San Luis Valley Health’s director of clinics. “This will improve our ability to deliver pediatric care right here in the San Luis Valley. It is very much in keeping with our ‘trusted partner in health’ philosophy. One important aspect of the Care Alliance is the Children’s Colorado Regional Clinics which will be located in the pediatrician clinic space at San Luis Valley Health."

The formal agreement establishes a standing Care Alliance Steering Committee between the two hospitals. The committee’s work will include streamlining care coordination to help reduce costs, improve quality, and support collaborative case management and knowledge sharing. Of key significance, the alliance means that local kids and their families will have increased access to some of the best minds in pediatric care for their children and young adults without having to travel.

In addition to providing this care, the professional team from Children’s Colorado will also provide mentoring, education, and training across care teams at SLVH to enhance the delivery of pediatric care.

“We are humbled and proud to partner with San Luis Valley Health to bring increased access to top-ranked pediatric care closer to home for families in the San Luis Valley,” said Jennifer Knotts, Children’s Hospital Colorado’s vice president of partnerships and business development. “Founded more than a century ago, our mission is to improve child health. This new partnership demonstrates our continued commitment to care for Colorado children regardless of where they live by eliminating barriers and increasing access to the knowledge and care of our pediatric experts in partnership with San Luis Valley Health.”

The only dedicated pediatric health system within a seven-state region, Children’s Colorado partners with community hospitals across a 1,000-mile radius that comprises Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and New Mexico to bring pediatric specialty care closer to home. This new partnership marks the 11th Care Alliance for the system. The Care Alliance's goals are to support community hospitals across the region by elevating and enhancing pediatric care in communities and, when needed, to streamline care to Children’s Colorado when a higher level of care or more specialized need arises for a family. Each Care Alliance is uniquely tailored to meet the specific needs of the community.

"Children’s Colorado has and continues to help us support our most critically ill and complex patients, but this collaboration signals a focus on prioritizing and enhancing pediatric care in the San Luis Valley,” said Dr. Amarilys Rojas, pediatrician, SLVH Pediatrics Clinic. “As the leading medical facility in the region with the most on-staff pediatricians, it is our duty to provide comprehensive care and be the medical home for the valley's children. This is especially true for complex patients and families where it is extremely difficult for them to be away from home and/or work when their child has medical or surgical needs. This collaboration is vital to the advancement of pediatric medical care in the region and serves as proof that both San Luis Valley Health and Children’s Colorado are putting kid’s health first, now and in the future.”

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ABOUT SAN LUIS VALLEY HEALTH

San Luis Valley Health is a regional health provider serving the San Luis Valley, Colorado, and beyond, providing high-quality health services for more than 95 years. In addition to our state-of-the-art hospital located in Alamosa, we also operate five clinics throughout the Valley and another hospital in Conejos County.

At San Luis Valley Health, you get a level of care that equals or exceeds that of major metropolitan hospitals. You also experience the warmth, dedication, and personal attention often found only in a smaller community.

SLVH delivers healthcare that revolves around you as the patient. When you receive care at San Luis Valley Health, you are treated by a team of people who know you as a whole person.

ABOUT CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL COLORADO

Children’s Hospital Colorado is one of the nation’s leading and most expansive nonprofit pediatric healthcare systems with a mission to improve the health of children through patient care, education, research and advocacy. Founded in 1908 and ranked among the best children’s hospitals in the nation as recognized by U.S. News & World Report, Children’s Colorado has established itself as a pioneer in the discovery of innovative and groundbreaking treatments that are shaping the future of pediatric healthcare worldwide. Children’s Colorado offers a full spectrum of family-centered care at its urgent, emergency and specialty care locations throughout Colorado, including an academic medical center on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, hospitals in Colorado Springs, Highlands Ranch and Broomfield, and outreach clinics across the region. For more information, visit www.childrenscolorado.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.