Philadelphia-based Hahnemann University Hospital, slated to close later this year, has stopped taking critically ill patients in its emergency room, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The 496-bed academic medical center still plans to keep its emergency department open for patients with less critical needs.
The news came on June 29, after the Philadelphia Fire Department said on June 28 that the hospital couldn't continue accepting trauma patients or those with other critical issues, such as a serious heart attack, according to a separate Inquirer report. The hospital said a staffing shortage contributed to the alert.
"After reviewing our plan of closure and in consultation with the Pennsylvania Department of Health, we felt this move is in the best interest of patient safety," Alexander E. Trebelev, MD, the CMO of Hahnemann, said in a statement cited by the newspaper.
The emergency department announcement means Hahnemann's emergency room is no longer designated a level 1 and 2 trauma facility.
The hospital's owner, American Academic Heath System, part of El Segundo, Calif.-based Paladin Healthcare, announced plans June 26 to close the academic medical center in early September because of financial problems.
Philadelphia Academic Health System — a subsidiary of American Academic Health System that has filed for bankruptcy — plans to close Hahnemann by Sept. 6. It said it does not plan to close another of its subsidiaries, St. Christopher's Hospital in Philadelphia.
More articles on patient flow:
North Carolina hospital reopens
Chicago hospital to close obstetrics unit
Mold forces Seattle Children's to close 14 operating rooms