61.0°,
Light Rain Peninsula Hospital Center to remain open
acquired by Revival Home Health Care
Peninsula Hospital Center and Revival Home Health Care have finalized an agreement that has the Brooklyn-based for-profit agency acquiring the Far Rockawway facility, hospital officials said.
The agreement still requires final New York State Department of Health approval, however, hospital officials have agreed to permit Revival to take over the daily operations, effective immediately.
Todd Miller of Revial was named chief restructuring officer and is working with hospital staff to reorganize the facility's operations. The agreement has received thew support of the state Department of Health and Local 1199, the union with the most employees at Peninsula.
"Revival is very proud to be able to step in and save Peninsula Hospital Center for the Rockaway community," Miller said."We are also very happy that Peninsula Hospital's 104-year tradition of 'providing quality health care' will continue."
The 200-bed facility serves approximately 100,000 Far Rockaway residents and the Five Towns. Communities in the Five Towns such as Lawrence and Cedarhurst, which have always had a subatantial Orthodox Jewish population, have experienced an exponential growth of observant Jews in the past few years.
Though the hospital is $60 million in debt — with a third of that amount owed to the facility’s largest union Local 1199 — potential investors have been talking to hospital officials. The current operating deficit is $10 million, the same as last year.
“We are all just hoping for the best, it is too early for some type of resolution,” Hospital spokeswoman Liz Sulik said previously.
Peninsula had announced on Aug. 24 that though no official closure plan has been submitted to the New York State Department of Health, the hospital had transferred some patients to other appropriate health care facilities.
St. John’s Episcopal Hospital at 327 Beach 19th Street, also in Far Rockaway, is the closest emergency department. There were two ambulances stationed outside Peninsula’s emergency department for the next week should they be needed for urgent transport, officials said.
As the formal agreement between MediSys Health Network that financially supported the hospital and Peninsula ended on Aug. 22 — St. John’s readies to expand its emergency department.
The hospital received permission on Aug. 24 from the state to begin expansion of its emergency room, outpatient care, surgery, intensive care and inpatient facilities, hospital officials said. “The space we have is under utilized,” said Dr. Eric Nazziola, St. John’s emergency department chair, who added that by adding the space and changing the method in which they assess patients, waiting time for treatment will be reduced resulting in more patients being treated.
