Medical and Dental facilities in PACNORWEST set to merge

Photo by Photo by HM3 Erica Robinson

Members of Fleet Hospital Bremerton operate on a patient during surgery scheduled to coincide with a February fleet hospital training exercise. Financial functions of the Fleet Hospital Bremerton, Naval Hospital Bremerton and its branch medical clinics, and the Naval Dental Center Northwest merged Oct. 1 as part of a Navy-wide move designed to reduce command and control infrastructure and administrative overhead.

By JO2 MARY POPEJOY
Staff Writer

Friday, October 8, 2004

The staffs of Naval Hospital Bremerton and Naval Dental Center (NDC) Northwest are currently in the process of merging together as part of the CNO’s vision of a more efficient and cost effective Navy.

The integration began Oct. 1 with the transfer of financial functions from dental activities to naval hospitals at Bremerton and Whidbey Island.

This merger is designed to reduce command and control infrastructure and administrative overhead. Last month, the new Surgeon General of the Navy, Vice Adm. Donald Arthur, MC, USN, requested the integration of dental and medical treatment facilities be accelerated. As a result, full integration of NAVHOSP Bremerton and Oak Harbor with NDC Northwest are being moved up from May 2005 to February 2005.

The merger will realign the Bremerton, Bangor and Everett dental clinics under the umbrella of Naval Hospital Bremerton. The Whidbey Island dental clinic will align with Naval Hospital Oak Harbor.

When fully implemented, the merger will combine the fiscal, administrative and business functions of the medical and dental commands. With this change, the dental command structures and positions such as the CO, XO, CMC and director of administration will be eliminated.

According to Capt. Bill Roberts, commanding officer Naval Hospital Bremerton, the personnel currently in those positions will move into new positions that will keep them as “a valuable member of the partnership between the hospital and the dental clinics.”

According to Capt. Scott Peck, DC, commanding officer NDC Northwest, this integration will be beneficial for everyone involved.

“After the Navy review of the dental command structures, it has been estimated that the elimination of dental commands will save the Navy millions of dollars over the next five years. The overall goal of this initiative is to improve business processes for Navy medicine while maintaining the same high standard of care to our beneficiaries.”

With the merger currently in the works, Peck and Roberts are eager to see what the future holds.

“We are incredibly excited for this opportunity to bring some of our dental partners on board so we can learn and benefit from their energies and experiences,” said Roberts. “I am confidant that we will emerge stronger and better able to take care of our Soldiers, Sailors, Airman and Marines who may come into harms way, their families and heroes of the past and future.”

Peck added that he couldn’t have asked for better commands to partner with for this integration.

“The tremendous support and leadership provided by Capt. Roberts, Capt. Susan Herrold and their staffs at NAVHOSP Bremerton and Oak Harbor will undoubtedly lessen the impact of the integration on NDC Northwest’s 150 military and civilian personnel.”

The two phases of integration will include the transfer of financial functions from the dental activities to the designated medical treatment facilities, which occurred Oct. 1; disestablishment of dental commands with the exception of the three dental battalions in Camp Pendleton, Camp Lejeune and Okinawa; and full integration into a Bureau of Medicine and Surgery designated military treatment facility by early 2005.