Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Erlanger Health System announced it has entered a strategic affiliation agreement with Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville and will join Vanderbilt's physician-led network.
Under the terms of the affiliation agreement, Erlanger will collaborate with Vanderbilt to improve quality of care in multiple service lines, including cardiac surgery, trauma services and stroke care, said Dr. C. Wright Pinson, CEO of Vanderbilt Health System.
Erlanger has also joined the Vanderbilt Health Affiliated Network, a physician-led organization that includes 56 hospitals and about 4,000 participating physicians and clinicians. The main goals of the network are to improve population health and reduce costs of care.
The affiliation will expand Vanderbilt's network further into southeastern Tennessee.
Pinson said the network members share best practices and data to improve quality and access to care.
Vanderbilt's network is the Tennessee region's largest physician-led organization. Vanderbilt Health System is a four-hospital system with more than 100 clinics.
Erlanger is southeastern Tennessee's only academic medical center and is affiliated with the University of Tennessee College of Medicine. The health system serves 500,000 patients annually.
