Impact of Muhlenberg closure on Plainfield's United Way agencies

Below is the message received from Jeff Scheckner, Community Development Director for the United Way of Greater Union County concerning the impact Muhlenberg's closure will have on the United Way's partnering agencies in Plainfield. I'm sure the same points can be made by UW agencies in the surrounding communities that are serviced by Muhlenberg. -- Dan Damon

Dear Friends in Plainfield,

As we continue in our struggle to maintain Muhlenberg as a viable, fully functioning medical facility we also need to consider how a potential closing or diminishing of services could impact the residents of greater Plainfield. To measure this aspect, I contacted the directors of United Way partnering agencies. The following are my findings; comments and any additional information is appreciated.

Regards,

Jeff Scheckner

Impact of Muhlenberg Hospital Closing on

Plainfield United Way Partnering Agencies

By Jeff Scheckner

Community Development Manager

United Way of Greater Union County

33 West Grand Street

Elizabeth, NJ 07202

Jeff.Scheckner@uwguc.org

There are 12 Plainfield agencies which partner with United Way of Greater Union County: American Red Cross-Tri-County, BCSB Cathie Life Development Center, HomeFirst, King’s Daughter Day School, Literacy Volunteers of Union County, Neighborhood House, Presbytery of Elizabeth, Second Street Youth Center, UCPC Behavioral Health Care Rehabilitation, United Family and Children’s Society, YMCA and YWCA. Each would be directly or indirectly impacted by the planned closing of Muhlenberg Hospital.

One common issue cited by the 12 agencies is that since Muhlenberg is the only hospital in proximity, staff, volunteers, clients, program attendees and their families would lose the service of their major health care provider. As Muhlenberg Hospital employs nearly 1,000 persons, many of the agencies indicated parents and those in a support network for program attendees could become unemployed and could no longer afford program fees. Loss of health insurance due to unemployment status is an associated issue.

The YMCA, YWCA, Neighborhood House and Second Street Youth Center emphasized their focus on sports, children’s playground activities and use of a gymnasium and pool as places for potential physical injury. Each has an arrangement with Muhlenberg to assist with emergencies.

The Neighborhood House has a foster grandparents program which would be in jeopardy if the hospital closes as many of these volunteers do not drive or have mobility issues and these individuals are assisted by services provided by Muhlenberg.

The Presbytery of Elizabeth located in Plainfield provides health counseling to four churches in the Plainfield area. Many of their clients are Hispanic immigrants who do not speak English. Muhlenberg provides significant assistance to immigrants/non-English speakers in completing forms and offering bi-lingual health information.

For disabled persons and those who do not have a vehicle, the Tri-County American Red Cross significantly assists with transporting people to the hospital and doctors appointments. Should Muhlenberg close, the Red Cross would need to greatly expand transportation services to another hospital(s). To accomplish this they would need to purchase additional vehicles, hire and train drivers, expand insurance coverage, increase dedicated telephone lines and hire staff for billing and scheduling. Further, the Red Cross provides food packages on several major holidays and if unemployment increases due to hospital staff layoffs, these services would need to be expanded.

United Family and Children’s Society has a program “Rising Stars” for children with ADHD. The program is run jointly with Muhlenberg and both share with outreach, staffing, and administration. For proper Medicaid reimbursement, the State mandates the hospital must be in close proximity of the clients it is serving. Without Muhlenberg, this program could not continue for Plainfield area residents unless the State can change how Medicaid can cover expenses.

UCPC Behavioral Care would no longer have the benefit of inpatient psychiatric care or emergency screening services and this may result in an increase of clients seeking services from UCPC as its first or only recourse, rather than receiving acute care at Muhlenberg. This could result in more clients needing emergency services presenting UCPC an increase caseload of acutely ill clients. It could also mean clients in need will not receive hospitalization or need to be hospitalized at another distant hospital and have a shorter stay due to increased demand for hospital beds.