Health Care

Iberia Medical Center buying competitor Dauterive Hospital IMC plans to continue operating Dauterive Hospital as an acute care hospital.

IMC plans to continue operating Dauterive Hospital as an acute care hospital.

Iberia Medical Center and Progressive Acute Care, a Louisiana health care system based in Mandeville, have entered into a non-binding letter of intent for IMC to acquire Dauterive Hospital in New Iberia.

Progressive Acute Care owns Dauterive, a 103-bed acute care facility that provides medical and surgical services, 24-hour emergency care, an inpatient geriatric psychiatric unit and an inpatient rehabilitation center.

Iberia Medical Center

The transaction, which the two hospitals announced in an Oct. 5 press release, is subject to the successful completion of customary due diligence and closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of this year. IMC plans to continue to operate Dauterive Hospital as an acute care hospital serving Iberia Parish.

Dauterive Hospital

“The goal of this acquisition is to continue the prosperity of both hospitals and offer new opportunities for growth, thereby ensuring that Iberia Parish residents have access to high quality, patient-centered care,” IMC President and CEO Parker Templeton said in the press release. “The acquisition will bring both hospitals together and unify the medical communities of New Iberia. We feel it is a strong solution to meeting the needs of our community in a changing health care environment.”

“This presents the possibility of combining the resources of our respective organizations to better serve the health care needs of the New Iberia community,” said Dauterive Hospital CEO Brad Mabry. “The incredible employees, board of directors and medical staff have serviced this community for 95 years. We look forward to working with IMC leadership to build on our existing strengths.”

In 1951, Iberia Medical Center was created with the establishment of Hospital Service District No. 1. Over the next nine years, the Lions Club worked with the Iberia Parish Police Jury to open Iberia Parish Hospital on Sept. 13, 1960. In 1981, the facility expanded to become Iberia General Hospital, undergoing a $10.8 million construction project to add a fourth wing to the existing building. During the 1990s, services were expanded to include home health, behavioral health and rehabilitation, and the facility became Iberia Medical Center to reflect the broader base of services provided to the community.

The hospital, which is licensed for 100 acute care beds, employs 580 full-time equivalent professional, technical and support staff.