Posted on 03/28/2014 5:56:45 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – After 129 years, North Adams Regional Hospital is shutting down.
Hospital workers were informed of the decision on Tuesday. Around 530 people will lose their jobs.
The decision to shut down comes as the hospital files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. It also affects the VNA & Hospice, along with the Northern Berkshire Healthcare Physicians Group.
Current patients will be transferred to other facilities through April 4. The emergency room will close on Friday.
“In the six years that I have been on the board we have investigated every possible avenue and exhausted all options as we searched for a way to continue operating the hospital and its affiliates,” said Board Chair Julia Bolton in a released statement. “Board members, management, physicians, and employees have worked together with dedication and commitment to prevent this outcome. But now, given our finances and the daunting challenges that small rural community hospitals are facing in this healthcare environment, we can no longer continue.”
According to the hospital's website, they are the largest employer in the city of North Adams. The hospital is now helping employees file for unemployment benefits.
Without North Adams Regional Hospital, people will have to drive an extra half-hour to get to the next closest hospital.
Berkshire Medical Center is about 22 miles away in Pittsfield. Southwestern Vermont Medical Center is actually a little closer at 18 miles away.
"The severity of what is going on caught us all totally off guard," said Diane George, a registered nurse at NARH.
Doctors, nurses, and patients say they were blind-sided by the announcement, calling it a travesty, and wondering what will happen next.
"The cost of relocation, your family uprooted, if you're in this community all your life, how do you take your family away?" Nancy Bullett, a North Adams councilwoman asked rhetorically. "Trying to find jobs here is going to be extremely difficult. This is a small town and no way can this town absorb that many people."
"Right now it's hard to get a primary care physician," said Susan Wood, a hospital employee, "Shutting the doors of the OBGYN and the surgeons, where are they going to go?"
For some people, like Bridget Herman, having a medical facility close to home can be especially reassuring.
"As a caregiver for my mother who has acute leukemia, not having a hospital nearby, if something happens, is scary," she says.
CEO Timothy Jones says there'll be a state rapid response team at the hospital this week to help staff file for unemployment benefits and health insurance. They'll also be helping with resume writing and job searches.
Many of the angry workers and residents, on Tuesday night, were hoping their elected representatives can do something to relieve the community-wide misery.
To all those effected who vote for LIBs/DIMs...bwahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
"Look at this, $11.50 for an aspirin!!"
.... despite the fact that (1) they probably actually had to pay ten cents on the dollar of that bill and (2) had no idea of the insane cost-increasing regulations the hospital had to cope with.
I wish them joy, they'll now have one less thing to bitch about.
I don’t understand. They’re all progressive and have such nuanced minds in NA. How can voting for, and getting the government expansion and redistribution you wanted result in fewer jobs and loss of wealth?
Yeah I’m thinking the new clinics are due to population growth. We’ve seen new urgent care centers in the last couple of years, but not a lot of change since 2003.
The trend to specialists and even general doctors maintaining multiple offices isn’t brand new either. You see that more in smaller towns, and rural areas where a physician will maintain an office for a day because there is just not enough volume to maintain an office there full-time. It makes sense that they would team up and share the office.
Those are not easy drives over rural New England roads in the winter.
We have been seeing his story here n the nightly news every night. And no, no mention of why. Interesting that this is town where our governor lives. People will have to drive 45 minutes, in good weather, to go to an ER.
My better half works at a hospital in the next county and thins are not looking good there either. That hospital recently merged, (was taken over) by a big hospital in the eastern part of the state. It has been coming to this for the last 5 years. As soon as this “transformer” took over. Ronmnecare was not good, but Patrick implemented commycare immediately, his best bud is obammy.
Evil corp BS !
your not on the DU !
Useful idiot of the left .
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Listen you stupid flaming buddy.
First, I have been here since 98. Daily.
Second, Fascism is the collaboration of business and government to benefit both and screw the citizens.
Fascist corporations collaborating with fascist governments are a conservative issue.
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