In an effort to accommodate its expansion plans, the leadership team at Spokane-based Alpine Orthopaedic & Spine announced it’s looking to relocate from its third-floor suite in the Providence Holy Family Hospital complex.

Rick Hansen, vice president of clinic operations and strategy, says the clinic, currently located in 3,000-square feet of space at 212 E. Central, on the North Side, is recruiting an additional surgeon and physiatrist.

Hansen says Alpine currently has a full-time staff of 10 employees, which includes a surgeon and a physician assistant.

“We’re using every inch of space we have available,” he says. “We’ve been looking at this (moving) for about a year.”

The clinic’s operators have looked at a dozen existing properties in the Spokane area and soon plan to narrow their choices. Hansen also says the Alpine hasn’t ruled out the prospect of new construction, but that option would most likely push back the current goal to be in a new location by the first quarter of next year.

Alpine provides orthopedic and spine care with an emphasis on the management of the adult spine, arthroscopy, fracture management, joint surgery, and sports medicine.

Clinic operators desire to bring more service under one roof for patients, according to Hansen.

“Today’s health care delivery system continues to be fragmented and choppy for patients to navigate,” Hansen says. “The last thing they want to deal with is a health care system that makes it difficult to get the help they seek.”

The clinic wants to expand services to include patient education classes, fully integrated physical therapy, and expanded regenerative medicine therapies, he says.

Dr. Miguel Schmitz, an orthopedic and spine surgeon with experience spanning three decades, says Alpine’s leadership team believes expanding services also will improve their patient’s positions with insurance companies navigating claims.

“I’ve been going to bat for patients by appealing unnecessary insurance denials for coverage for needed services and assisting patients through worker’s comp claims as part of what we do,” Schmitz says. “It’s time-consuming removing the roadblocks to get care for these patients to better their lives.”

Alpine also has debuted a new corporate brand identity while unveiling a redesigned logo and website.

“While our name remains the same, our logo and website have changed significantly to better represent where Alpine Orthopaedic & Spine is going and what we plan to provide for our patients,” says Schmitz, who is certified with the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery with a certificate of added qualification in sports medicine.