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Letter: Decision to contract with Surgical Specialists of Colorado

I am a retired orthopedic surgeon and the chief medical officer at Aspen Valley Hospital. I work with physicians at the hospital on many different fronts. I have been intimately involved in efforts to improve our surgical services and have worked with Dr. Bill Rodman to find solutions for the dilemma that was created when Rodman terminated his relationship with Dr. John Schultz almost a year ago.

For many years, Rodman held an exclusive contract for surgical services (24/7, two full-time surgeons) with Aspen Valley Hospital. While the contract was undoubtedly useful for many of those years, it eventually became apparent that the hospital needed to explore other options. Contracting with a surgical group was appealing for many reasons. It is believed that the group environment will enhance quality, be cost-effective, ensure the use of evidence-based protocols, offer a strong peer-review program, create a greater degree of accountability and bring the best surgical practices and subspecialty access to Aspen Valley Hospital. Of the options available, this was the one that would best serve the community.

Based on the above criteria as well as a willingness to incorporate Rodman into their group (which was very important to us), Surgical Specialists of Colorado was chosen to provide surgical services. Rodman was involved in these discussions and was well aware of the hospital’s intentions. It was shocking to many of us that he chose not to join their group. However, this was a fair and thoughtful process that took place over a lengthy period of time and with only one goal in mind: to provide the highest quality of surgical care to this community.



Dr. Eric Stahl

Chief medical officer




Aspen Valley Hospital