PMMC cited low admissions as the cause for the decision. “This decision is based on extremely low admission volume over the course of the past 12 months,” PMMC CEO Rich Newell told the hospital’s board of trustees in a memo obtained by The Mercury.
Deb Bennis, PMMC director of marketing and communications, could not immediately provide the publication with further comment.
Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals is speaking out against the decision. Cindy Spacht, RN, a hospital employee, said in a union statement obtained by The Mercury, “The PEDS unit is vital for the health of the children of Pottstown. Now, instead of getting quality care right here in our community, sick children we be packed up and shipped out to hospitals, some as far as 30 miles away.”
News of the temporary closure comes about three months after West Reading, Pa.-based Reading Health System announced plans to acquire PMMC and four other hospitals owned and operated by Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems.
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