A fire that closed Brockton (Mass.) Hospital last week has strained a nearby hospital and doubled their emergency room volume, NBC affiliate 10Boston reported Feb 14.
Signature Healthcare Brockton (Mass.) Hospital evacuated 176 patients after a 10-alarm transformer fire broke out in the basement Feb. 7. The hospital discharged 38 and transported 138 patients to other area facilities. The damage is still being assessed, and there is no time frame for when the hospital will reopen, according to the report.
"We are feeling the pressure. Before this incident, we were being asked to come in early, stay late, pick up extra shifts, and now, it is almost at a crisis," Jennifer Falter, a nurse at Good Samaritan Medical Center, told 10Boston.
Brockton-based Good Samaritan Medical Center, a nearby hospital that took on some of the evacuated patients, said its emergency room volume has doubled since the fire at Brockton Hospital, and it is working to bring in more resources.
"While Brockton Hospital remains closed, we will continue to work on creative ways to ensure that our dedicated staff has the resources they need and that everyone in the Brockton community has access to care without interruption," the hospital said in a statement to 10Boston. "Soon after last week's fire, Good Samaritan Medical Center immediately began working with our colleagues at Brockton Hospital, and city and state officials to help maintain vital access to care for this community."
City Councilor Jeffrey Thompson said he is calling on state and local officials to help.
"We really need to treat this like the emergency it is," Mr. Thompson said in the report. "Lives are at stake, so we need a full buy-in from our state partners, we need monies for repairs, we need coordination."