Acute care, surgeries, and other services are coming to an end at Bradford Regional Medical Center as it consolidates with Olean General Hospital.
Upper Allegheny Health Services announced the completion of what it called the “consolidation phase of its transformation plan” Friday afternoon.
Starting Monday, all surgeries will be consolidated at Olean General, and BRMC will now maintain an active compliment of 10 patient beds for the region. The plan also calls for BRMC to continue to offer emergency care, all current outpatient services, behavioral health and long-term care/rehabilitation.
UAHS President and CEO Jeff Zewe said that the company had “made excellent progress in ensuring the smooth consolidation of services,” and added that “[o]ur number-one priority is quality.”
You can read Zewe’s full statement below:
Upper Allegheny Health System (UAHS) has completed the consolidation phase of its transformation plans, meeting its initial May 1 target date. All surgeries will be consolidated to Olean General Hospital (OGH) as of Monday, May 3, and Bradford Regional Medical Center (BRMC) will now maintain an active compliment of 10 patient beds for the region.
“We have made excellent progress in ensuring the smooth consolidation of services,” said Jeff Zewe, RN, president and CEO of UAHS, OGH and BRMC. “Our number-one priority is quality, ensuring that the care of patients is safe and effective, and that the transfer of patients from Bradford to Olean is seamless. Our team has worked diligently to ensure the best transition possible for all patients, physicians, support staff, partners and other key stakeholders.”
As shared in the initial transition plans announced in January, UAHS has consolidated its acute care and surgical services to OGH, with the exception of the 10 medical beds which remain in service at BRMC.
BRMC’s Critical Care Unit (CCU) closed earlier this spring, a transition which also occurred seamlessly.
The plan calls for the Bradford campus to continue to offer emergency care, all current outpatient services, behavioral health and long-term care/rehab (Pavilion services). Essentially, all services with the exception of surgery and the CCU will continue at the BRMC campus.
In addition, BRMC and OGH will focus on developing Centers of Excellence and continuing to grow their expansive network of primary care and specialty providers. This was demonstrated in last week’s announcement of the return of dental services to the Bradford campus, through a new partnership with Keystone Rural Health Consortia.
The Olean campus will continue to provide its interventional cardiac catheterization laboratory — which operates jointly with Kaleida Health’s Gates Vascular Institute — as well as its neurology program and stroke center, ICU intensivist program, radiation oncology, vascular services, orthopedic surgery, dialysis services and wound care, including hyperbaric therapy.
UAHS also continues to have meaningful conversations with members of its Community Advisory Committees in Bradford and Olean. “These new committees are allowing us to gather valuable thoughts and insights from many regional representatives,” added Zewe. “They’re sharing a variety of unique perspectives, many of which will help us fine-tune our plan for the better as we all move forward.”
Transportation of acute and emergent patients is still provided by local emergency medical services (EMS) professionals. In addition, free transportation services are also now available between the two hospitals for non-acute patients and all patient visitors. Reservations can be made by calling 1-866 RIDE ATA (1-866-743-3282), and can be made up to two weeks in advance.
In coordination with the transition, BRMC and OGH launched a new singular website for both hospitals Friday, April 30. The website can be found at www.brmc-ogh.org and replaces the former hospital websites.
All patients being transferred, it referred to Olean best make sure your PA insurance covers your processes. It is a real shame that NY has taken over so that this needed hospital has to close it’s many doors so that NY can make more money! Women cannot have natural childbirth anymore, all are induced!
Jeff stated is was a smooth transition of Bradford to Olean, he doesn’t care what happens to the people of Bradford. The only thing he wants is make sure olean becomes solvent. I hope the people Bradford will not go there, there are other alternatives. My hope the UPMC will come to Bradford and and give the people of Bradford the good healthcare that they deserve. What happened to all the money collected for the hospital is to go to Olean.
The plan is to bus patients from Bradford to Olean for care? With Bradford’s population (read Medicare/Medicaid), roads and weather? Did they spent a Friday after work at the Beef ‘n Barrel thinking this up??