Dignity Health, with a total of 39 hospitals in Arizona, California and Nevada, reports higher volume and higher costs in its fiscal second quarter.

Demand rose  in its acute-care activities, physician organizations and joint ventures.

Most interestingly, the big  system said it is in partnership talks with other integrated-delivery networks outside its current geographic footprint. And Dignity officials say they have been making progress moving to a consumer-focused, value-based operating model,  which started in  2010 as its Horizon 2020 strategy; the biggest progress so far is in speeding ER care and reducing surgical-site infections.