Keck Medicine of USC has been contracted by the Culinary Health Fund to provide health care to the members and families of the Culinary Workers Union in Las Vegas.

Under the terms of the agreement, clinical staff from Keck Medicine will provide primary care, internal medicine and pediatric care to the Culinary Workers Union members, who work in hospitality in Las Vegas.

The Culinary Workers Union has 55,000 members and their 70,000 dependents in the Las Vegas area. The physicians from Keck Medicine will see patients in part of a 59,000-square-foot facility called the Culinary Health Center. At present, there are 68 Keck Medicine of USC employees working out of that location, but that number is expected to grow.

Culinary Workers Union members and their families can also receive dental care, optometry, lab and radiology services at the center. It also houses a pharmacy and an urgent care center that is open 24 hours a day.

Valerie Naftzger, associate administrator of human resources and administrative services, said the partnership made sense to Keck Medicine officials because they learned that the organizations share a common mission: providing excellent health care at an affordable price.

“These are the workers that go into the five-star hotels in Las Vegas and what the organization told us was they wanted them to have five-star health care,” Naftzger said. “That is their spirit and that was something we wanted to be part of.”

This is the first location built to serve the large membership of the Culinary Workers Union. Naftzger added that there are plans to build at least two more facilities in Las Vegas in the next few years to provide the members with access to locations in different parts of the city.

“This is an exciting and novel partnership for Keck Medicine,” said Paul Hudson, chief clinical integration officer and executive administrator for the new relationship in Las Vegas. “The Culinary Health Fund really wants to provide excellent health care and we want to help them do that. We are excited to be part of this partnership and see the value for the union members, their families and what Keck Medicine can bring to the table in Las Vegas.”

— Hope Hamashige