Leaders in the health care industry showcased some of the area's assets during a special gathering Thursday.

The Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce and the Medical Center of the Americas sponsored the event, the first of its kind in the region, said Emma Schwartz, president of Medical Center of the Americas Foundation.

The single message that everyone agreed on was that collaboration among health care providers will be the key to the growth of the industry, and to the successful delivery of health-related services to the community.

"The best opportunity that I see is in regional collaboration," Schwartz said.

James Valenti, president and CEO of University Medical Center of El Paso, along with others, stressed that the future of health care includes a strong focus on prevention, more widely available outpatient care, and developing relationships with families to meet health care needs.

"We're looking at prevention, at keeping patients out of hospitals, so they can be at school or home," Valenti said.

Army Col. Michael Heimall, commander of Beaumont Army Medical Center, said construction is underway for the new $1 billion military hospital, and that among other things, there are plans to expand the center's program for medical residents.

Jacob Cintron, CEO of Del Sol Medical Center, said, "My colleagues and I, we compete, and yet we all support one another. The future of health care in El Paso is very, very positive."

And Dr. Syed Yusoof, a cancer survivor and president of the El Paso Medical Society, said he chose to stay in El Paso, and is actively helping to recruit more medical specialists to the region.

Oscar Cantu, another presenter and publisher of El Norte de Ciudad Juarez newspaper, told the audience that he too is a cancer survivor, and wants to increase the Jurez community's access to cancer treatment.

Read this article:

Health care industry offers treatment and economic opportunities, leaders say