All of the economic talk that is so prevalent now and has been for the past two years has intersected with the healthcare reform debates in various ways, but one increasingly concerning event should be focused on. Hospitals are closing. The Wall Street Journal highlighted St. Vincent’s Hospital in NYC closing earlier this month. St. Vincent’s was the last Catholic acute-care center in New York City:

Patients and residents of the Greenwhich Village neighborhood said the closing…meant they would have to travel dozens of blocks on New York City’s congested streets to the nearest emergency room…Staff at other city hospitals, many already inundated with uninsured patients coming into their emergency rooms, were bracing for more people…Patient volume at Bellevue Hospital, a city trauma and acute care center, has jumped 13% in the past 30 days. (WSJ: Hospital Closing Stirs Fear)

The result of one hospital closing means increased ambulance ride times, increased demand for government funding for the remaining hospitals, increased hours for the staff.

What do you think it means for patient safety?

More Reading

NY Times: St. Vincent's

Google “Hospitals Closing”

EP Monthly