Philadelphia hospital to close
The Temple University Health System has confirmed that it will close Northeastern Hospital by July 1, 2009.
The Philadelphia-based health system will transition the 100-year-old facility from an inpatient hospital to a multi-specialty ambulatory care center.
Temple officials said the decision was made in the face of declining use and mounting losses on healthcare operations at Northeastern Hospital. In Fiscal Year 2008, for instance, the hospital reported a loss of $6.6 million and is projected to lose an additional $15 million in FY 2009.
TUHS itself has shown losses on healthcare performance for the last five consecutive years – including a $116 million loss for FY 2008, and a negative outlook from Moody’s Investors Service in December 2008.
"Northeastern Hospital has served this community for generations, and it is our intention to continue to meet the needs of our patients for years to come," said Northeastern Hospital CEO John Buckley. "Those of our patients who require more complex care will continue to have access to their doctors at Temple University Hospital."
Buckley said the decision follows an intensive examination of all options for maintaining hospital services and reflects a trend of area hospital closures that have taken place in the past decade. He said Northeastern has been unable to fund critical capital improvements for years.
Northeastern Hospital will begin reducing inpatient services in May and end all inpatient and emergency services by June 30, 2009. The Northeastern campus will be redeveloped by attracting other health and social-service tenants.
The new Northeastern Ambulatory Care Center will focus on prenatal care and family health, offer non-emergency walk-in care and provide outpatient specialty services such as cancer care, cardiac care, digestive disease care, orthopedics and occupational health.
"The creation of Northeastern Ambulatory Care Center permits us to continue to meet the current and future healthcare needs of the community with a financially sustainable model," said Edmond F. Notebaert, president and CEO of the Temple University Health System.
Notebaert said the transition would result in the elimination of some positions at Northeastern Hospital.
Temple University Health System consists of Temple University Hospital (the system's flagship teaching hospital), Jeanes Hospital, Temple’s Episcopal Campus, Temple Physicians, Inc. (a network of primary-care physicians), and Temple Transport Team.
