The University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center Bel Air’s single licensed pediatric inpatient bed will close on or about June 1, instead of May, although pediatric care will continue in the emergency department, the hospital confirmed to Becker’s.
The center, one of two main campuses in the UM Upper Chesapeake Health system, previously slated the unit’s closure for May 7, citing low admissions.
However, the center elected to delay the transition to June 1 “for strong collaboration between UM UCH and MHCC,” Shena Matsos, the hospital’s director of marketing and communications, told Becker’s. She noted that the original date, May 7, still meets the 45-day criteria to file a notice with the Maryland Health Care Commission, “but we wanted to make sure we allotted plenty of time for a public hearing and MHCC collaboration.”
The Baltimore Sun cited the Maryland Code of Regulations, which allows exemptions from certificate-of-need review if the facility provides a 45-day notice of a partial facility closure to the commission. Additionally, a facility proposing to partially close must hold a public informational hearing and post a notice of the hearing in public areas of its facility and on its website.
In a statement shared with Becker’s, the system said it held a public informational hearing April 10 at Harford Community College to discuss the upcoming closure of the unit.
During the hearing, the system emphasized its commitment to meeting the community’s healthcare needs through continued pediatric emergency care and enhanced outpatient services, the statement said.
“Many days see no pediatric inpatients,” Elizabeth Wise, MSN, the system’s president and CEO, said in the statement. “As healthcare continues to advance, care that was once delivered in a hospital is now delivered in outpatient care settings such as urgent care and pediatricians’ offices.”
The Bel Air facility will continue to provide pediatric care in the emergency department.
“As is the case today, patients needing a higher level of pediatric care are transferred to a nearby children’s hospital or pediatric care facility designed exclusively for young patients, such as the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital,” Ms. Wise said.
University of Maryland Children’s Hospital, based in Baltimore, has more than 25 care specialties supported by multidisciplinary teams. According to the health system, 97% of pediatric patients who receive care at UM Upper Chesapeake Health return home directly from the emergency department.
“We’re fortunate to be part of the largest network of care in the state of Maryland, which treats more Marylanders than any other health system,” Ms. Wise said.
