Desert Care Network Partners with Loma Linda University Children’s Health on Pediatric Hospitalist Services

Desert Care Network (DCN) is pleased to announce a new affiliation agreement with Loma Linda University Children’s Health (LLUCH).  Effective August 1, 2020, LLUCH began providing Pediatric Hospitalist services at both Desert Regional Medical Center (DRMC) in Palm Springs and JFK Memorial Hospital in Indio. 

Pediatric Hospitalist services include consulting with pediatric patients when needed in the Emergency Room, admitting and treating pediatric patients to the inpatient setting, caring for newborns, and caring for boarder babies – those non-Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) babies who remain in the hospital after the mother has been discharged. The pediatricians will also serve as preceptors for DRMC’s Family Medicine Residency Program, which began July 1, 2020, and will continue to support the pediatric education of the residents in the DRMC Emergency Medicine Program.

“It’s important to partner with an academic hospital that specializes in pediatric care and can provide the sub-specialty care needed for the children in the Coachella Valley,” said Michele Finney, CEO for Desert Regional Medical Center and Desert Care Network. “Offering a teaching environment locally with the connection to one of the largest children’s hospitals in the country is a valuable component to providing exceptional quality of care for our youngest patients.”

 “Loma Linda University Children’s Health has cared for patients from the Coachella Valley for many years,” said Alexandra Clark, MD, Division Chief of Pediatrics for LLUH. “Becoming part of the medical staff at Desert Regional Medical Center and JFK, as well as the local community, connects us even more with the children in the desert.  We are pleased to be partnering with Desert Care Network for this expansion opportunity.”