A hospital in Waukegan has announced cutbacks to its cardiology care, causing concern among patients. NBC Chicago’s Vi Nguyen reports.
A community hospital in suburban Waukegan announced it is making changes to hours of operations for patients receiving specialized heart care and treatment in Lake County.
Staff at Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan received a memo Wednesday letting them know about the temporary changes to health care for heart patients.
“Yes, there will be increased risk and increase gamble for community members absolutely unfortunately,” said Jennifer Banek, Lake County Coroner.
Banek is sounding the alarming and raising concerns after learning the hospital is changing hours of operation for its catheter lab.
“A cardiac cath lab is utilized when people have or experiencing cardiac emergencies and so time is really important,” she said.
The hospital said cath lab hours will be limited from Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and that patients experiencing heart attack symptoms will not be seen outside of operating hours, including weekends.
“Every second counts when you’re in an emergency situation that involves your heart,” said Banek. “Every second counts.”
Local
Bankey knows cardio patients will have to travel a little further at least 15-20 minutes to get care after hours worries this will put a strain on resources.
“I know our emergency services fire departments, all of those folks are very well equipped to care for people, but simply there’s nothing they could do about the increase transport times,” she said.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Vista Health System issued a statement to NBC Chicago said the temporary changes are due to a nationwide shortage of healthcare professionals. It goes on to read, “We are not eliminating care — we are strengthening it by ensuring patients receive treatment from a well-supported, fully staffed, and expertly trained team."
The hospital said its been working with local EMS and regional partners to make sure emergency cardiac patients are routed to nearby hospitals to receive proper care after hours.
The mayor of Waukegan was sadden by the hospital’s decision and told NBC Chicago in a statement the city’s fire department added extra resources, including staff and equipment while they wait for the hospital to address staffing.
For now, Banek said she will have to wait and see on the response times.
“Certainly, I hope they are able to rebuild this department and resume these services to the community that frankly deserves much more than what has been delivered,” said Banek.
The hospital said the temporary changes will go into effect starting March 24 and that the goal is restore operations within 60 days.
