Idaho Falls Community Hospital and Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital Partnering to Open New Pediatric Specialty Clinic

To better meet the growing need for specialized pediatric services for children in Southeast Idaho and surrounding areas, Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital and Idaho Falls Community Hospital are partnering to provide outpatient specialty care to kids in the new Pediatric Specialty Center. 

Primary Children’s physicians will begin offering outpatient cardiology services at the clinic on April 4. Primary Children’s will expand services by the end of 2022 to include orthopedics, urology, and some same-day surgeries. 

“We’re excited to partner with Idaho Falls Community Hospital to provide specialty care to families in the area to better serve the community,” said Katy Welkie, CEO of Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital and vice president of Intermountain Children’s Health. “Having a child with a chronic health condition is stressful enough without having to make a lengthy trip to receive care. With this new partnership, families can more conveniently access the specialized care their child needs. This saves parents from having to take days off work and drive several hours for care and gives families peace of mind.”

In 2020, Primary Children’s provided care and life-saving treatments to more than 4,000 children in Idaho.

“Partnering with Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital seemed like a natural fit for Idaho Falls Community Hospital,” said Casey Jackman, COO of IFCH. “Primary Children’s has been providing care to children of Southeast Idaho for decades. Working with such a high-quality healthcare system shows our commitment to the community. This partnership allows us to treat children close to home yet still offering the same quality care.” 

The new outpatient center is close to the Idaho Falls Community Hospital, which allows children to receive same-day surgical procedures from a Primary Children’s surgeon. 

Primary Children’s physicians at the Idaho Falls Pediatric Specialty Center are part of an integrated medical team, that includes researchers, surgeons, and cutting-edge technology at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City. 

When a pediatric patient needs more advanced critical care, doctors at the center will coordinate with caregivers at Primary Children’s Hospital, and then provide follow-up care in Idaho so that families don’t have to commute back and forth to Salt Lake City. 

This Primary Children’s Hospital network of care is part of Intermountain Healthcare’s commitment to create the nation’s model health system for children. This multi-faceted plan and investment of at least $500 million in children’s health will be shared by Intermountain Healthcare and community philanthropic support through an emerging campaign organized by Intermountain Foundation. This network expands the reach of Primary Children’s high standard of pediatric care, to ensure every child has access to the right care at the right place at the right time.

Primary Children’s specialties including cardiology, gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery, and orthopedics are recognized in the nation’s Best Children’s Hospitals rankings published by U.S. News & World Report. 

###