CHI Health and Nebraska Medicine announced a new collaboration Thursday that will make St. Elizabeth the only burn care center in the state.

Nebraska Medicine said it will close its inpatient burn unit on Sept. 4. It will continue to care for burn patients in trauma situations and on an outpatient basis, but all patients needing inpatient burn care will be sent to CHI Health St. Elizabeth.

St. Elizabeth is one of 66 burn centers in the U.S. verified by the American College of Surgeons and the American Burn Association. The unit has 16 beds and serves an average of 500 burn patients from a six-state area each year. Nebraska Medicine treats about 100 burn patients a year.

This decision was made after much careful research and discussion, Nebraska Medicine Chief Medical Officer Harris Frankel said in a news release. "As we transition away from inpatient burn treatment, residents of the Omaha metro can be assured that our emergency and trauma response for burn patients will be as strong as ever, as will our outpatient clinic care. Well work closely with the staff at St. Elizabeth to make sure burn patients receive the right care in the right center.

The two hospital systems said the move shows they are working together to eliminate the duplication of this highly specialized service. Consolidating inpatient care to one burn unit lowers the overall cost of care for patients and employers, while still ensuring patients have access to high-quality care.

The team of highly skilled and specially trained physicians, nurses and therapists welcome the opportunity to care for more burn patients. Cary Ward, CHI Health chief medical officer said in the release. This collaboration is a perfect illustration of how health systems are working together to reduce costs and improve quality of care through specialization.

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Nebraska Medicine to close burn center, send patients to St. Elizabeth - Lincoln Journal Star