JUNE 26 APPROACHES

June 26 the day of destiny for Muhlenberg is rapidly approaching.

We can only hope that the Department of Health and Senior Services will implement the guide lines from the New Jersey Commission on Rationalizing Health Care Resources final report in reaching its decision on Solaris's application.

There is no question in our opinion that Muhlenberg meets all the requirements for a Medical Essential Hospital and should not be closed. No one can predict how a State bureaucracy will act.

I have reproduced the pertinent criteria and my responses as follows:

• Whether the services provided by a hospital are available and accessible elsewhere in the hospital market area; No hospital in area has available beds or acceptable accessibility to provide safe obstetrical care. No adequate psychiatric facility in nearby hospitals. Muhlenberg is the only local area hospital certified for elective angioplasty as well as life saving emergency cardiac angioplasty.

• What the impact on residents would be in terms of travel time/distance to access hospital care in the event of a hospital’s closure: The time for rescue squads to transport Plainfield’s residents to a functioning ER will increase from 10 minutes to 35 or more depending on traffic conditions. I have deliberately used the term functioning since an ER as proposed for MRC without the readily availability of acute in-hospital facilities is nothing more than a walk-in –clinic.

• Whether a hospital is part of a hospital system and the extent of the resources available to the system to support a financially distressed facility; The problem facing Muhlenberg is part of Solaris’s deficits in their not for profit components. The questions proposed above need to be answered.

• What public transportation alterations or other transportation solutions are available or would be necessary to maintain access to care in the event of a hospital’s closure::There exists no direct route to any of the nearby hospitals. From Plainfield to JFK by public transportation would involve a train or bus to Penn Station Newark, a train to Menlo Park, and then a bus to the hospital. The bus from Plainfield could also be used to take the Menlo Park train from Elizabeth NJ Transit RR Station. Please figure out the time and cost for such an adventure. On the other hand a taxi from Plainfield to JFK costs $30.00 one way. To Overlook in Summit would require train or bus to Newark and a second train or bus to Summit. If by train there would also be a transfer in Newark by light rail from Penn Station to the Broad Street Station of the Morris Essex line.

• What quality of care and efficiency improvements are possible and necessary in financially distressed, essential hospitals; Muhlenberg has one of the best performance statistics among New Jersey Hospitals. The need is not to let that capability to be destroyed.

• What potential access to care implications would be for particular medically underserved populations if a hospital were to close; Catastrophic! The population affected has a demonstrated above average risk for diabetes, cardiac disease, obstetrical and child care exposure.

• What the potential impact on access to key ambulatory services would be if a hospital ceased operating as an inpatient facility; if complete diagnostic facilities are not maintained including as a minimum CT scan only first aid type care could be provided.

• What the impact on employment in the hospital market area would be should a hospital close. The loss of 1100 jobs plus those in outside service industries would be disastrous for a community with an already large population dependent on “day jobs”.