A nearly 60-year-old hospital in rural Kentucky said the facility's age is keeping physicians away, but it hopes a new facility will help address the issue, according to WAVE, an NBC-affiliated TV station in Louisville, Ky.
The current Jane Todd Crawford Hospital opened on Oct. 29, 1962, in Greensburg, Ky. Administrators contend it is so outdated that it is hindering physician recruitment — specifically young physicians.
"They [potential recruits] look at it, and it's not a place where they’d like to come practice right away," Medical Director Gary Partin told WAVE. "We could certainly use more specialty input" and more physicians overall, he said.
Currently, the 25-bed critical access hospital does not have specialists on staff or surgeons, according to the report. Five physicians serve hospitalized patients, and three see emergency room patients.
But on Feb. 26, Jane Todd Crawford Hospital broke ground on a new hospital. Hospital administrators said they hope the $20 million hospital will help end recruiting problems, WAVE reported.
Hospital Administrator/CEO Rusty Tungate, who has served in his role since March 2005 and helped get the hospital back on more solid financial footing during his tenure, said the day of the groundbreaking: "My hope is, that 50 years from now, the citizens of Green County will look back on this day and say that we rose to the occasion, we met the challenges, and we did our part."
The new hospital is expected to open in spring or summer of next year.