SCHENECTADY — St. Peter’s Health Partners is suing the leaders of a Schenectady cardiology practice at the center of its widening and ongoing legal battle with Ellis Medicine following the collapse of merger talks between the two healthcare organizations this summer.
The hospitals are currently sparring over access to 27 physicians at Cardiology Associates of Schenectady, which has been part of St. Peter’s since 2021. The cardiology practice is one of the largest in the Capital Region, serving 50,000 patients annually at outposts in Amsterdam, Gloversville, Clifton Park and Guilderland, in addition to its main facility on Balltown Road in Schenectady.
St. Peter’s’ lawsuit, filed last week in state Supreme Court in Albany County, accuses cardiologists Dr. Christopher Dibble and Dr. Stephen Piacentine of carrying out a “disloyal campaign” to convince most of their colleagues to quit St. Peter’s and join Ellis, in violation of their contracts. According to the lawsuit, 20 cardiologists from the practice, including Dibble and Piacentine, have already notified St. Peter’s of their intention to join Ellis when their contracts expire Dec. 14…