Nope.

In fact it has stoked the fire.

When Larry Heinike announced he was leaving UPMC Horizon for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, he said one frustration remained on his plate: creating a "reasonable, rational relationship'' between Sharon Regional Health System and Horizon.

Calling the current adversarial relationship "illogical,'' Heinike said Horizon has continually made overtures to Sharon Regional to forge some type of partnership.

"Over the years their position has always been they want to close Shenango Valley (Farrell) hospital,'' Heinike said. "They approached the issue as: First close Farrell, and then we'll discuss it. To me, that's a heavy-handed unilateral approach to the world.''

Heinike said a new health-care enterprise should be formed first and then those involved could figure out what buildings and services would be needed at a particular location. Calling for one hospital to close before talks can begin is unfair, he said.

Although Heinike and Wayne Johnston, chief executive officer of Sharon Regional, have clashed publicly over the years, Heinike said he doesn't believe those verbal spats scotched any potential deals.

A couple of times, Heinike said, he offered to step aside if that would help create a deal. But that did nothing, he said.

Heinike's comments drew a spirited response from Johnston.

There was never any talk of closing the Farrell hospital as part of a deal, he said.

"There's not enough capacity to close down one of these facilities either in Sharon or Farrell,'' Johnston said. "There's not enough capacity for one.''

Johnston said that in the last meeting a few years ago, Horizon and UPMC officials' concept was for UPMC to take over Sharon Regional.

"We don't feel local needs should be secondary to strategies and machinations of people from Pittsburgh,'' Johnston said, noting that he and all of Sharon Regional's board live in local communities.

"Heinike hasn't lived in the Shenango Valley for many years, whereas all of our people are a part of this community,'' Johnston said.

He also pointed out that in its takeover of Aliquippa Hospital in Beaver County, UPMC officials promised to keep the hospital open but changed their minds and closed it.

"We don't want something like that to happen here in the Shenango Valley or Mercer County,'' Johnston said.

Additionally, he said, Sharon Regional always tries to offer the best services locally which has helped to make it the county's largest employer.

"We don't think we should be a feeder to the Pittsburgh hospital,'' Johnston remarked.

The notion that joining UPMC sucks local patients into Pittsburgh hospitals hasn't happened, Heinike said. "That couldn't be any further from the truth,'' he said.