A Medical Device Daily

United Surgical Partners International (Dallas) reported signing an agreement to acquire Surgis (Nashville, Tennessee), a private surgery center company. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Surgis operates 24 surgery centers and has an additional seven facilities under development. Of the 31 total facilities, 20 are in markets currently served by United Surgical Partners or its healthcare system partner. Surgis also manages the endoscopy service in 42 acute-care hospitals.

Surgis had revenues under management of $118 million in 2005 and currently consolidates 13 of the 24 operational facilities.

William Wilcox, CEO of United Surgical Partners, said, “This is a strategically attractive acquisition for the company.“

United Surgical Partners has ownership interests in or operates 104 surgical facilities. Of the company's 101 domestic facilities, 68 are jointly owned with not-for-profit healthcare systems. The company also operates three facilities in London.

The purchase is expected to be completed in March or April, United Surgical said.

In other dealmaking activity, IPC-The Hospitalist Company (North Hollywood, California) reported that it has expanded into the Detroit area with the acquisition of Michigan Hospitalists, a practice of about 70 providers.

Already this year, IPC has announced expansions into Salt Lake City and Ocala, Florida, and now has practice locations in 19 markets nationwide.

Michigan Hospitalists has been serving patients in the greater Detroit area since 1997. The vast majority of its physicians, including President/Founder Gary Salem, DO, and partners Michael Davis, MD; Paul Ragatzki, MD; Alan White, MD; and David Vandenberg, MD, have joined the IPC team.

“We were at a critical juncture in our growth, and we knew that we would be able to achieve more by availing ourselves of the vast resources offered by IPC,“ said Salem.

Hospitalists are acute-care specialists who focus on a patient's hospital care from time of admission to discharge. IPC provides inpatient care in 20 markets nationwide, employing about 500 physicians and managing more than $1 billion in healthcare expenditures annually.