COMPTROLLER LIU CALLS ON FDNY TO ASSESS IMPACT OF HOSPITAL CLOSURE ON MANHATTAN EMS CAPABILITIES
NEW YORK, NY - Yesterday, New York City Comptroller John C. Liu, along with Congressmember Jerrard Nadler, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, State Senator Thomas Duane and Assemblymen Richard Gottfried and Deborah Glick, today called on the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) to evaluate the impact the of the proposed closure and restructuring of St. Vincent's Catholic Medical Center (St. Vincent's).
In a letter to FDNY Commissioner Salvatore Cassano, Liu and others cited recent emergency room closures in Manhattan, as well as the FDNY's own data regarding increased EMS response times as cause for concern that the St. Vincent's restructuring will dramatically limit access to emergency services.
"As you know, if this closure is implemented, a total of 16 New York City emergency rooms will have been shuttered since 2002. Two of these recent closures were in Manhattan and, one of them, Cabrini Medical Center, served some of the very same communities as St. Vincent's Hospital," Liu wrote. "Demand for EMS services is rising throughout Manhattan, placing a greater strain on existing capacity and performance. Indeed, according to the Fire Department's publicly available data, the number of Manhattan ambulance runs has spiked from 305,064 in 2004 to 328,060 in 2009. In addition, average EMS response times to all incidents in the Borough of Manhattan have increased by more than 16 percent since 2004."
The letter also cited the impact on emergency rooms and ambulance turnaround times in Queens as a result of the recent closures of Mary Immaculate and St. John's hospitals, as cause for concern:
"The recent closures of Mary Immaculate and St. John's hospitals in Queens caused emergency room registrations and the number of patients waiting to be admitted from the Emergency Department to soar at surrounding hospitals," the letter continued. "In fact, New York City EMS reported increases in ambulance transports to the remaining hospitals ranging from 13 to 51 percent in the month following the closure.
"Given the possibility of cuts to EMS in the FY 2011 budget, we urge FDNY-EMS to immediately evaluate the impact of the proposed closure of St. Vincent's emergency room on FDNY-EMS operations and publicly release these findings. Residents and visitors to Manhattan have a right to know how the restructuring of the hospital will affect their access to emergency medical care. This transparency is critical to the effective functioning of government."
Below is the full text of the letter.
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January 28, 2010
Commissioner Salvatore J. Cassano
New York City Fire Department
9 MetroTech Center
Brooklyn, New York 11201
Dear Commissioner Cassano:
Congratulations on your recent appointment as New York City Fire Commissioner. On behalf of all City residents, please know that we deeply appreciate your many decades of service.
We write to request that your office swiftly release for public review a formal assessment of the proposed closure and restructuring of St. Vincent's Catholic Medical Center and the impact this closure will have on EMS capabilities within the Borough of Manhattan, and specifically, the communities served by the hospital.
As you know, if this closure is implemented, a total of 16 New York City emergency rooms will have been shuttered since 2002. Two of these recent closures were in Manhattan and, one of them, Cabrini Medical Center, served some of the very same communities as St. Vincent's Hospital. Demand for EMS services is rising throughout Manhattan, placing a greater strain on existing capacity and performance. Indeed, according to the Fire Department's publicly available data, the number of Manhattan ambulance runs has spiked from 305,064 in 2004 to 328,060 in 2009. In addition, average EMS response times to all incidents in the Borough of Manhattan have increased by more than 16 percent since 2004.
The recent closures of Mary Immaculate and St. John's hospitals in Queens caused emergency room registrations and the number of patients waiting to be admitted from the Emergency Department to soar at surrounding hospitals. In fact, New York City EMS reported increases in ambulance transports to the remaining hospitals ranging from 13 to 51 percent in the month following the closure.
Turnaround time at the nearest hospital--the amount of time from an ambulance arrival at the emergency room until the ambulance is available to take the next call--grew by nearly three minutes. Because turnaround times are considered a proxy for emergency room overcrowding, this increased lag time also reflects a troubling reduction in the City's ability to handle incoming 911 calls.
Given the possibility of cuts to EMS in the FY 2011 budget, we urge FDNY-EMS to immediately evaluate the impact of the proposed closure of St. Vincent's emergency room on FDNY-EMS operations and publicly release these findings. Residents and visitors to Manhattan have a right to know how the restructuring of the hospital will affect their access to emergency medical care. This transparency is critical to the effective functioning of government.
We look forward to your response, and remain confident that the surrounding community will also appreciate the efforts on behalf of the FDNY to provide a clear picture of how this proposal will affect access to emergency services.
Sincerely,
John C. Liu
NYC Comptroller
Jerrard Nadler
United States Congressmember
Scott M. Stringer
Manhattan Borough President
Thomas K. Duane
NYS Senator
Richard N. Gottfried
Chair, Assembly Committee on Health
Deborah J. Glick
NYS Assemblymember
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