OrthoWilmington in Wilmington, N.C., joined with three independent orthopedic physician groups in North Carolina last year to create EmergeOrtho, and the practice is now poised to become a major provider in the region, according to a Wilmington Biz report.
The practice includes 49 office locations in 21 counties. The merger occurred after two years of discussion and was a break from OrthoWilmington's previous efforts to expand, joining with one group at a time. OrthoWilmington was formed in 2012 when Atlantic Orthopedics and Wilmington Orthopaedic Group merged and grew to include a third orthopedic group in 2015.
Now, EmergeOrtho CEO Stephn DeBiasi reported there will be additional mergers in early 2017. The group currently includes 126 physicians and 237 physician assistants, nurse practitioners and therapists; the expansion in 2017 is expected to grow the physician count to 170.
The groups are expected to all use the same EHR and provide the same level of service.