PFW and Lutheran Health Network announce new health clinic collaboration

FORT WAYNE, Ind.—Purdue University Fort Wayne and Lutheran Health Network are announcing an expansion of their current relationship that now includes management of the university’s on-campus health clinic.

The new collaboration includes greater convenience and improved experiences related to access to high-quality healthcare and mental health services for the university’s campus community. It evolved from a request for proposals by Purdue Fort Wayne last fall for a healthcare provider who would operate the university’s current on-campus health clinic. Following a competitive process, Lutheran Health Network emerged as the finalist.

“Our university community is at the core of this decision. We are delighted to be working with Lutheran Health Network on this important initiative that will ensure the highest quality of healthcare for our students, faculty, and staff, as well as for our neighbors in the surrounding community,” said Ronald L. Elsenbaumer, chancellor of Purdue Fort Wayne. “We look forward to building on the solid relationship that currently exists between the university and Lutheran Health.”

As part of this new agreement, Lutheran Health Network will further develop its presence and impact on campus and will become the provider of healthcare and mental health services for the Purdue Fort Wayne community.

“We are very excited to continue to grow Lutheran Health’s relationship with Purdue Fort Wayne through this expansion of care,” said Lorenzo Suter, chief executive officer, Dupont Hospital. “It’s an honor to have been given the opportunity to serve those who are playing such a key role in shaping the future of northeastern Indiana.”

This is the second major collaboration announced between Lutheran Health Network and Purdue Fort Wayne during the past two years. The two organizations announced in July 2018 that Lutheran Health Network would become the exclusive provider of comprehensive healthcare for the university’s student-athletes. Services and resources were expanded to help provide comprehensive healthcare in the fields of sports medicine and sports performance—providing student-athletes with unprecedented access to this kind of specialized care.

“We’ve had a front-row seat to Purdue Fort Wayne’s positive transformation over the past 15 months,” said Lorie Ailor, chief administrative officer, the Orthopedic Hospital of Lutheran Health Network. “Helping expand healthcare options for the entire university, not just those student-athletes who already benefit from our services provided through Optimum Performance Sports and Fort Wayne Orthopedics, is an effort we believe will lead to bigger and better things.”    

The contract for clinic management by Lutheran Health became effective September 1.

For additional information, contact Susan Alderman, at 260-481-6165 (office), 260-489-5349 (cell), or [email protected].

About Lutheran Health Network
Lutheran Health Network is a taxpaying, integrated healthcare delivery system and one of the largest employers in the region. The foundation of Lutheran Health Network is an experienced team of more than 7,000 employees working together with the more than 800 physicians who make up its medical staffs. The network’s more than 100 access points in northern Indiana include physician offices, urgent care clinics, outpatient centers, and eight hospitals consisting of 973 licensed beds—797 in Allen County alone. For more information, visit lutheranhealth.net.

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