UF Health officially welcomes Flagler Health+ to the family

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Looking to improve the health of the St. Johns region by combining innovative health care opportunities with a longstanding legacy of supporting the community, University of Florida Health officials today announced that Flagler Health+ has become part of the University of Florida’s academic health center and will be renamed UF Health St. Johns.

Mori Hosseini, chair of the UF Board of Trustees, said the deal brings the best minds together to reimagine the delivery of health care to address patients’ biggest challenges, and will introduce UF Health’s unique brand of problem-solving care into the local health system.

“This is a win-win-win situation — for UF Health, for Flagler Health+ and — most importantly — for the patients we all serve throughout St. Johns and Flagler counties and beyond,” Hosseini said. “We are a university and a health system on the rise, and this is a community on the rise, one we are very proud to be a part of. This is a huge step forward.”

Last week The Wall Street Journal named the university the No. 1 public institution in the country in its “2024 Best Colleges in the U.S.” report, and UF Health Shands is the only health system in Florida consistently ranked in the top 3 Florida hospitals 10 years in a row.

UF Health will infuse additional resources into one of the state’s fastest-growing regions — not just financial resources, but human resources and intellectual capital. That includes technologically advanced care focused on world-class outcomes, research opportunities — including access to new clinical trials — and training programs for the next generation of care providers, said David R. Nelson, M.D., senior vice president for health affairs at UF and president of UF Health.

“All of us at UF Health are excited about our colleagues from Flagler Health+ joining our organization,” Nelson said. “Together, we have the resources and the community relationships to deliver outstanding care to everyone in what is one of the state’s fastest-growing regions. We will be able to bring innovative, high-quality, leading-edge care that builds on the Flagler Health+ legacy of supporting the health care needs of the residents of Flagler, St. Johns, Putnam, Clay and Duval counties.”