On Aug. 4, Jackson-based Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center will add Oxford (Miss.) Ortho & Sports Medicine and the Orthopaedic Institute of North Mississippi in Tupelo under its brand, uniting several major practices located all over the state.
In 2020, MSMOC helped launch private-equity backed management services organization U.S. Orthopaedic Partners, which has continued to grow rapidly over the last five years.
Now, three of USOP’s Mississippi-based partners are merging together to provide care for patients across a rapidly growing state.
Daniel Boyd, MD, an orthopedic surgeon and managing partner at the practice formerly known as Oxford Orthopaedics, spoke with Becker’s about why it was the right time for the three practices to merge, and how they will continue to improve care and access for patients across Mississippi.
Question: What was the inspiration behind this merger?
Dr. Daniel Boyd: The two clinics are already under the umbrella of USOP and in fact, our two clinics were the initial two groups who joined USOP under its private equity platform. We have a longstanding relationship with them regarding business practices and the expansion of orthopedic care in the southeast. Furthermore, a couple of our members in our group did their fellowships there [at MSMOC] so there’s a connection with our physicians as well. This, to us, is a natural next step to solidify our relationship and be able to expand in our market. In addition to Oxford, we have our Tupelo, Miss.-based site, which will also fall under the name of MSMOC. This rebranding is going to kick off a future expansion in the state of Mississippi. Currently in thinking about just this merger, it allows us to cover approximately 65 to 70% of patients in the state. As we continue to expand to other satellites, it is a recognizable brand for our patients and we feel like it allows us to position ourselves for future growth in Mississippi.
Q: How will this merger improve patient experience?
DB: As you might expect, our growth inside the group will make it easier for patients to find the care they need. Some of these patients are coming from rural areas and while our satellite clinics have served them well, occasionally they need specialized care in other regions of the state. This merger allows us to have a cohesive referral system and help patients receive the care they need more quickly. Furthermore, the fellowship training that is present in Jackson is a sports medicine fellowship under MSMOC, as well as a total joint fellowship. We already take part in the sports medicine fellowship, but this will allow this relationship to grow and expand, which allows us to recruit physicians to our other clinics more easily and provide patients with greater access as we bring more physicians to sites around Mississippi.
A lot of people think Mississippi is rural and southern and always number 50 in healthcare ratings. I would say, with the help of our legislature, the state currently has a lot of momentum. We used to be losing population centers, but now the tide is turning and many people are finding the secret that is Mississippi. They are finding that this is not the backwards place they thought, and people are moving here. There is an egress of people from major metropolitan areas who want a simple and safe environment for their kids. People are finding that in Mississippi. This early growth occurring will be mirrored by our clinic. One population center is northern Mississippi, where both of our clinics are located. Our physicians take care of the University of Mississippi athletic programs, and Ole Miss is now more than a regional brand, it’s a national brand. People from all over the country are coming to Oxford and finding out what a gem of a town it is and whether they’re from Texas or Ohio, they are choosing to relocate for good.
This growth that’s happening in Mississippi needs to be matched by our group and this merger allows us to have a cohesive, recognizable quality brand that will reach patients and serve them well. Our groups are matching this momentum that we see, with this influx of people, by rebranding and finding a cohesive way to deliver care to our patients and allowing us to grow exponentially as we find more locations and are not limited by a local name.
Q: What are your top priorities for the practices formerly known as Oxford Orthopaedics over the next 12 to 18 months following the merger?
DB: Initially, we will expand our services to surrounding communities under the new brand name, in combination with our Tupelo group. One of our goals right away in setting up other clinics is to recruit more physicians to serve North Mississippi. So that is No. 1 and No. 2 with our 18 month plan.
Q: Do you anticipate any challenges as a result of the merger?
DB: I think there will be some issues with patients understanding the renaming. They’ve seen our brand in Oxford for 30 years, and they’re used to identifying our clinic as a high-quality place that they can access easily. It may take some push by our marketing services to identify us by the new name. The good news is, MSMOC has been a high-quality brand for 40 years in the central part of the state, and is already recognized statewide. I’m confident that an initial period of possible confusion will be minimized.
Q: What other trends in orthopedics are you keeping an eye on right now?
DB: One is AI. USOP has been testing some of these opportunities. We as a platform have consolidated some of our business practices and physicians best practice protocols, some of our cost-saving measures, as well as in-house business practices such as EMR, is using AI. AI will be the defining challenge as well as the defining solution for many of our problems in society. That is likely an immediate concern for both physicians and patients to navigate how this new technology will be a part of delivering care.
On a more personal note, as a sports medicine specialist, it is the continued switch from inpatient care to outpatient care. While everyone is aware of ASCs, which have been a part of American medicine for years, the trend now will go further to the outpatient level to more procedural-based orthopedics in the clinic. Developing those protocols to make sure safety and quality is delivered and to make sure we have the infrastructure to provide care to our patients in a clinical setting from a procedural standpoint is another opportunity we will have in the near future.
