Sadler layoffs loom, HCA not looking to buy clinic

THE WOODLANDS, Texas –– The Sadler Clinic company, which has multiple clinics in Montgomery County has begun layoffs, expects more to come and is still leaving bankruptcy as a possible option, despite claims to the contrary last week.

A handful of employees were laid off last Friday, said Dr. Mark Wilkerson, president and board member of the clinic, but more will follow, although it’s unclear still how many workers will lose their jobs.

An employee who wished to remain anonymous had previously told Woodlands Online that the Conroe-based company may possibly be filing for bankruptcy and all clinics were closing, but company lawyers responded May 11 saying the claims were “completely false.” And while the 11 clinics are still open, bankruptcy has not been ruled out, Wilkerson said.

Sadler Clinic is currently in talks with Hospital Corporation of America, which owns Conroe Regional Medical Center, but despite reports of HCA trying to buy Sadler, that’s not entirely true, Wilkerson said.

“HCA buying Sadler has not been part of the discussions,” he said. “We’ve been working with them for several years...we’re in negotiations but that’s not something that they’re proposing to us.”

Sadler Clinic currently has about 400 employees, including roughly 70 doctors, he said, down from about 700 employees several years ago. That was before 29 doctors left in 2010 because of a non-compete clause, Wilkerson said, that prohibited them from practicing within a 22-mile radius of Sadler Clinic up to 18 months after having worked there unless they wanted a buyout.

The clinic has yet to recover from the loss of the doctors and this time things are different for those who leave the clinic.

The non-compete clause isn’t completely gone but Sadler is working with physicians who have recently left or who could be laid off to continue practicing in the area, Wilkerson said, though he declined to comment on specifics.

Smaller satellite clinics, including ones in Magnolia, Montgomery and Willis, will likely close, he said.

“We’re downsizing the clinic because our large infrastructure was for 100 or more doctors,” Wilkerson said. The clinic had recently leased a new building off Loop 336 in Conroe, for example.

The clinic has no intention of growing back to the size it was at anytime soon either, Wilkerson said.

“There are a large number of doctors moving to Texas because of things like tort reform, it’s very attractive to physicians here,” he said. “But there’s no need for the clinic to be that large. We’ll grow consistently to meet the needs of the county.”