Care News Update

Memorial Hospital

A Care News Update


On October 17, Care New England announced its Board of Directors approved ending negotiations with Prime Healthcare Foundation about their planned acquisition of Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island. The Board also approved Care New England management to begin the necessary plans and filings with the Rhode Island Department Health (DOH) to keep vital access to primary care and outpatient services in the community, while closing Memorial Hospital's inpatient units and Emergency Department. This requires approval by the DOH through what is called a reversal of certificate of need. There are many more steps in the process to determine when and how the inpatient units and the Emergency Department will close. Read the full announcement for more details.



 

The decision to close inpatient services

The decision to close the hospital inpatient and emergency department services is a complicated and significant issue that Care New England does not take lightly. Ideally, we would not need to do so. With a low demand for beds and an underutilized emergency department, we cannot keep MHRI intact the way it currently is – healthcare providers do their best work when they are busy, constantly using their skills, and solving problems for patients. By shifting our resources to other facilities with more patients, we can ensure our staff is equipped to provide the level of quality care the community has come to expect from Care New England. We must address the financial strain caused by drastically low inpatient volume– currently averaging 15 to 20 patients per day in a 294-bed hospital–resulting in losses of $23 million in the past fiscal year alone.

The Issues

The numbers show why it’s time to focus on the future of health care in Pawtucket.

There are many factors that have contributed to the decision to close Memorial Hospital’s inpatient services. Low patient census is contributing to significantly declining operating losses as people in the region seek their care elsewhere. With seven hospitals within a 10-mile radius of Memorial, there are existing resources to meet the inpatient and emergency medicine health care needs of the community.

The Transition

Care New England is protecting primary care.

Care New England is actively outlining a plan for the community that will define how we maintain primary care, ambulatory and some specialty services. We’re working diligently with the mayor, governor, DOH and our physicians, nurses and staff on future plans for MHRI, ensuring the healthcare needs of our community are met. As plans evolve we'll add information here and for specific service changes, visit www.mhri.org/changes/

Message to the community about the future of Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island

RECENTLY, CARE NEW ENGLAND MADE THE PAINFUL DECISION TO WORK TOWARD THE CLOSURE OF INPATIENT AND EMERGENCY SERVICES AT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL. This decision comes in large part from the sustained financial losses being incurred at the hospital, and a growing trend in health care of shifting away from a traditional hospital setting toward outpatient, primary and preventative care. This means fewer hospital beds are needed to meet patient needs.

DESPITE INVESTING MORE THAN $100 MILLION AT MEMORIAL in just a few short years in facility and infrastructure improvements, new clinical information systems, new program development, and ongoing subsidy of hospital operations, the plain fact is that the vast majority of the community served by Memorial is seeking their inpatient care elsewhere.

WE HAVE A 294-BED HOSPITAL, AND EACH DAY THERE ARE ONLY 20 OR SO PATIENTS FILLING OUR BEDS. With the exception of obstetrics and psychiatry, 70 percent of patients from Pawtucket, and 82 percent of patients from the broader Memorial service area do not seek inpatient care at Memorial. No business can operate with so little volume, especially not a hospital. We simply cannot maintain the level of quality and safety our system demands, and we accept nothing but the best care for our patients.

CARE NEW ENGLAND IS COMMITTED TO SERVING PATIENTS AND MEETING COMMUNITY NEEDS IN THE BLACKSTONE VALLEY. That commitment is not ending with the closure of inpatient and emergency services. It endures as we seek to reshape the future of health care both in this region and throughout the state, and ensure unrestricted access to needed services for the patients and families of the Memorial service area.

WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY AND MEETING REGULARLY WITH STATE AND LOCAL LEADERS, PHYSICIANS, NURSES AND STAFF to discuss and coordinate our efforts. We are working with the Department of Health (DOH) through each step of this process, and in accordance with their regulatory process to ensure that no one loses access to care in this region.

WE’RE HONORING OUR PENSION COMMITMENTS TO EMPLOYEES, and providing assistance finding opportunities within Care New England to those employees displaced by this change in service. Care New England is dedicated to creating a healthier community. Our plan will stabilize our situation so that we can continue our missions of care, protect the futures of some 8,000 employees across the Care New England network, and preserve access to care for those in the Blackstone Valley.

I will provide regular updates on this important topic as the plan progresses. I would also encourage you to log on to CareNewEngland.org/Memorial for the most recent information related to our plans for Memorial Hospital and health care in the community. Thank you for trusting Care New England with your health care needs, and we look forward to what the future holds for this community and the state.

Sincerely,
James E. Fanale, MD
Executive Vice President,
Chief Operating Officer & Chief Clinical Officer,
Care New England

View Printable Version

Know the facts

The inpatient census is declining.

Average daily inpatient census of 15 to 20
The fiscal Year 2017 Key Statistics:
  • 294 Licensed beds
  • 2,857 Discharges (excludes rehab)
  • 11,128 Patient days (excludes rehab)
  • 15 to 20 Inpatients average daily census
  • 33,462 Emergency room visits
  • 0 Deliveries
  • 2,286 Surgeries
    • 554 Inpatient surgeries
    • 1,732 Outpatient surgeries

Financial performance continues to decline.

Eight-year trend of significantly declining operating losses with a total loss of $91,333,537 since CNE acquisition in 2013.

MemorialHospital

Patients are seeking care elsewhere. 

  • 3,200 or 70.1% of patients from Pawtucket do not seek inpatient care at Memorial Hospital.*

  • 10,200 or 82.4% of patients from the Memorial service area do not seek inpatient care at Memorial Hospital.*

  • Physicians send patients from this area to other hospitals nearby.

  • Discharges from RI hospitals

    • 37.5% Miriam Hospital
    • 26.5% Rhode Island Hospital
    • 17.6% Memorial Hospital
    • 6.4% Women & Infants Hospital
    • 4.1% Landmark Medical Center
    • 3.6% Roger Williams Hospital
    • 2.2% St. Joseph’s Hospital
    • 1.4% Kent Hospital
    • 0.7% All other RI hospitals

*(excludes obstetrics and psychiatry)
 

Resources exist to meet the health care needs of the community.

Hospitals/emergency rooms within 10-mile radius of Memorial (*within 16-mile radius)
  • Miriam Hospital
  • Rhode Island Hospital
  • Roger Williams Medical Center
  • Fatima Hospital
  • Women & Infants Hospital
  • Bradley Hospital
  • Kent Hospital*
  • Landmark Medical Center*
  • Sturdy Memorial Hospital
Community health centers nearby
  • Blackstone Valley Community Health Care
  • The Providence Center
  • East Bay Community Action Program
  • Tri-Town Community Action Program
  • Providence Community Health Centers, Inc