Quincy city officials and the Attorney General are likely to claim victory in getting Steward Healthcare System to agree to open a "satellite" emergency room at the otherwise shuttered Quincy Medical Center (in addition to an already operating urgent care facility elsewhere). Patrick Ronan at the Patriot Ledger reports:
Amid calls from state and local officials to retain an ER in a city with more than 93,000 residents, Steward announced Tuesday that it has filed a letter of intent with the state’s Department of Public Health to open a satellite ER in the hospital’s existing emergency department at 114 Whitwell St. The for-profit company said it still plans to close the rest of the 124-year-old hospital by Dec. 31.
Steward said the satellite ER will be open 24 hours per day, seven days per week, and it will be staffed with physicians and nurses. There will also be on-site diagnostic radiology and laboratory services. Patients with serious emergencies or who need inpatient services will be taken to other acute-care hospitals.
A word of caution comes from a knowledgeable person:
Deborah Socolar, a North Quincy resident and former co-director of the health reform program at Boston University’s School of Public Health, said she is concerned about how the satellite ER will be staffed. She said some of Quincy’s ER workers were under the impression it would close Dec. 31, so they got new jobs.
Socolar said news of the ER staying open, although welcomed, doesn’t change the fact that Quincy is about to lose its hospital. “It’s obviously still a loss for the city to not have a full-fledged ER that would have operating rooms upstairs and as a result would be able to handle a wider, more diverse array of patients,” Socolar said.
But it really goes beyond that, doesn't it? Do you really want to give the impression to the public that an ER exists when there is no connection in the building to the kind of services that might be needed for emergent patients? What are the clinical ramifications of the delay associated with accepting a patient for triage and initial treatment in Quincy and then bundling him/her up for transport to another hospital? Some percentage of patients will be better off going directly to a real hospital's ER directly. Who is going to make that judgement? If you were an EMT with a patient in your ambulance, what choice would you make? If you have concerns and you call ahead to the Quincy ER, you are likely to hear, "Best to take the patient directly to a full service ER."
Look at these two maps. If you need emergent care and live in the north or west part of Quincy, you may well be better off going to BID-Milton from the start (above). If you live in the south or east part of the city, you may well be better off going directly to South Shore Hospital (below). In short, a good portion of those 93,000 Quincy residents will not need or want a satellite ER.
Here's my prediction: After the six-month trial period, this facility will be quietly closed, citing a lack of business. The ambulance drivers and the public will vote with their feet.
Amid calls from state and local officials to retain an ER in a city with more than 93,000 residents, Steward announced Tuesday that it has filed a letter of intent with the state’s Department of Public Health to open a satellite ER in the hospital’s existing emergency department at 114 Whitwell St. The for-profit company said it still plans to close the rest of the 124-year-old hospital by Dec. 31.
Steward said the satellite ER will be open 24 hours per day, seven days per week, and it will be staffed with physicians and nurses. There will also be on-site diagnostic radiology and laboratory services. Patients with serious emergencies or who need inpatient services will be taken to other acute-care hospitals.
A word of caution comes from a knowledgeable person:
Deborah Socolar, a North Quincy resident and former co-director of the health reform program at Boston University’s School of Public Health, said she is concerned about how the satellite ER will be staffed. She said some of Quincy’s ER workers were under the impression it would close Dec. 31, so they got new jobs.
Socolar said news of the ER staying open, although welcomed, doesn’t change the fact that Quincy is about to lose its hospital. “It’s obviously still a loss for the city to not have a full-fledged ER that would have operating rooms upstairs and as a result would be able to handle a wider, more diverse array of patients,” Socolar said.
But it really goes beyond that, doesn't it? Do you really want to give the impression to the public that an ER exists when there is no connection in the building to the kind of services that might be needed for emergent patients? What are the clinical ramifications of the delay associated with accepting a patient for triage and initial treatment in Quincy and then bundling him/her up for transport to another hospital? Some percentage of patients will be better off going directly to a real hospital's ER directly. Who is going to make that judgement? If you were an EMT with a patient in your ambulance, what choice would you make? If you have concerns and you call ahead to the Quincy ER, you are likely to hear, "Best to take the patient directly to a full service ER."
Look at these two maps. If you need emergent care and live in the north or west part of Quincy, you may well be better off going to BID-Milton from the start (above). If you live in the south or east part of the city, you may well be better off going directly to South Shore Hospital (below). In short, a good portion of those 93,000 Quincy residents will not need or want a satellite ER.
Here's my prediction: After the six-month trial period, this facility will be quietly closed, citing a lack of business. The ambulance drivers and the public will vote with their feet.