The orthopedics program at Flagstaff-based Northern Arizona Healthcare has been designated as an Orthopedic and Spine Institute, two years after its inception, the Arizona Daily Sun reported Feb. 22.
The designation denotes that the program provides a physician-led set of services shaped by research and the hospital's own data.
It is the first program to be recognized as an institute at Northern Arizona Healthcare, which comprises orthopedic providers in Flagstaff, Sedona, Oak Creek, Cottonwood and Prescott Valley.
Northern Arizona Healthcare will collaborate with Phoenix-based Banner Health to research ways to improve patient care and outcomes.
"Not all organizations necessarily see the value in having an institute versus a service line because typically an institute is a whole lot more work, a whole lot more oversight and a lot more data collection. And typically all those things cost more money," Matt Kraemer, orthopedic service line administrator, told the Sun.