Media Contacts: Nancy Stringer, UCSD (619)543-6163, Jeffrey Bean, SHARP (619)636-2115

UCSD Healthcare and Sharp HealthCare have combined forces to establish a bone marrow transplantation program (BMT) that will be jointly managed by both organizations.

The move will enhance regional bone marrow and stem cell services and improve availability of services for local patients. The collaboration allows for shared staffing and support facilities, saving administrative and infrastructure costs. For example, the program will operate one apheresis unit, where the initial removal of the patients' stem cells takes place, and one stem cell processing laboratory. It will also provide a greater number of patients the opportunity to participate in innovative clinical trials.

"This is an important example of two local health care providers coming together to provide high quality care for the community in a specialized area where collaboration makes more sense than competition," the new board of the UCSD/Sharp Healthcare Bone Marrow Transplant Program said in a joint statement. "Bone marrow transplantation is one of the complex, technologically advanced areas of patient care where service and results are improved if larger numbers of patients are involved with the program."

The UCSD/Sharp program will provide services for patients at UCSD's John M. and Sally B. Thornton Hospital in La Jolla, and at Sharp Memorial Hospital in Kearny Mesa. Under the new arrangement, the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, an affiliate of Sharp Healthcare, will now participate with the UCSD Cancer Center in the research work of the joint program.

Leaders of the two systems expect that the consolidation will raise the profile of the San Diego region as a premier bone marrow transplantation clinical and research center.

"We want to provide San Diego patients the highest level of bone marrow transplantation service available today, and give more patients access to promising new therapies, many developed in our own laboratories," said Kent B. Sherwood, Chief Executive Officer of UCSD Healthcare. "Because this medical procedure requires a high level of expertise and technology to support a top-quality service, we determined with our colleagues at Sharp that a joint venture would result in more efficient and cost-effective use of resources. "

Michael W. Murphy, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sharp HealthCare, called the partnership a "tremendous win for the community."

"This gives to the San Diego region a comprehensive and integrated program in transplantation that brings together the strengths of both Sharp and the UCSD cancer programs," Murphy said.

"The new UCSD-Sharp Healthcare partnership is a step in the right direction," said Supervisor Ron Roberts. "This is a great accomplishment consistent with the recommendations of the Regional Healthcare Advisory Council report."

Supervisor Dianne Jacob added that "this kind of cooperation between health providers not only improves access to high quality care, but makes good sense in terms of the best use of resources to improve the health of our community." Jacob and Roberts led the countywide effort resulting in the 1998 "Partners in Health" report of the San Diego Regional Healthcare Advisory Council.

The medical director of the combined program is Edward (Ted) D. Ball, M.D., professor of medicine and chief of the blood and marrow transplantation division at UCSD School of Medicine. He was formerly director of the bone marrow transplant program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. Ball is an expert in transplantation and a pioneer in the development of new techniques for treating patients with various forms of leukemia.

Heading the program at Sharp Memorial Hospital is David Oblon, M.D., who recently joined the staff at Sharp from Brown University, where he launched and directed Brown's bone marrow transplant program. Oblon will have an appointment on the faculty of the UCSD School of Medicine.

Representatives from UCSD and Sharp have been named to serve on the board of the UCSD/Sharp Healthcare Bone Marrow Transplant Program, a limited liability company. Board members are Dan Gross, CEO of Sharp Memorial Hospital; Trisha Khaleghi, Director of Oncology/Sharp HealthCare; Thomas Shiftan, M.D., Medical Director Oncology/Sharp HealthCare; Paul Hensler, administrator at UCSD Thornton Hospital; Robert Hogan, financial director for the UCSD hospitals, and Charles Mittman, M.D., dean for clinical affairs at UCSD School of Medicine.

Administrative leadership of the program will rotate each year, with Gross serving as the program's Chief Executive Officer for the first year and Hogan as its first Chief Financial Officer.