Two clinics that added orthopedics at the University of Central Florida's College of Medicine lost millions of dollars last year, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The clinics were launched in the hopes of boosting revenue and supporting the faculty practice's solvency, but instead they lost $6.8 million last year. The college of medicine Dean Deborah German told the Sentinel that the practice didn't have the infrastructure to support orthopedics, nor an understanding of what the specialty would entail.
Since the beginning of 2019, three orthopedic surgeons have resigned and one had his position eliminated. To stymie future losses, the clinics will no longer include orthopedics.
Adding orthopedics was just one aspect of a turnaround plan for the clinics, which lost $5.8 million in 2016-17. UCF Health also invested in a new EMR, competitive compensation packages and consultants in the attempt to improve the clinics' financial situation.