LVHN ‘committed’ to Carbon hospital
Lehigh Valley Hospital Network officials said they remain committed to plans for a $65 million hospital in Mahoning Township after municipal planners questioned its need earlier this week.
The 89,000-square-foot facility, to be called Lehigh Valley Hospital−Carbon, is planned for 35 acres of open farmland on the north side of Blakeslee Boulevard, catty-corner to the Walmart Superstore.
Initial plans call for a hospital that includes all private rooms for inpatient care and a medical office building.
The planners recommended that the Mahoning supervisors reject Lehigh Valley Health Network’s conditional use application.
“Although we were disappointed with the recommendations of the planning commission, we remain committed to our plan and to answering the supervisors’ questions about LVHN’s proposed new hospital in Mahoning Township,” said Terry Purcell, future president of LVH-Carbon.
The 35 acres of farmland along the busy highway where LVHN hopes to build its future facility is zoned for commercial use and tailored toward retail spaces, Robert Slaw, another commission member and Mahoning supervisor, said.
Seeing as it’s not included on the township’s list of approved uses for that lot, a hospital is subjected to the conditional application process. LVHN submitted its application earlier this month.
“For more than 65 years, Carbon County was served by two hospitals: Palmerton Hospital and Gnaden Huetten,” Purcell said.
“With the closure of the first and the impending changes at the second, the people of Carbon deserve a health partner who is ready to step in and bring them the care they need, close to home. We are that partner now and we hope to deepen that relationship with Lehigh Valley Hospital-Carbon.”
A public hearing on the prospective hospital scheduled for Nov. 18. Supervisors will make their determination at the November hearing, which begins at 6 p.m.
“It is part of our DNA as an organization to go where the need is greatest, and Carbon County has shown that its residents need more access to care, particularly as the population ages,” Purcell said.
“We always work closely with the communities we serve, and at present, thousands of Carbon County residents rely on Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) for convenient, high-quality care.”
Comments
Video tape and share all public meetings.
Pull all candidates contribution records.
Video and share all public meetings.
Pull and release all campaign contributions records.
Vote out all incumbents.
I don't know if Palmerton and Lehighton Hospitals couldn't make it because of the local reputation or because there just weren't enough sick people. Find it hard to believe there aren't enough sick people here. For whatever reason the hospitals for as long as I can remember struggled.
If you remember at the last couple take overs/mergers/re-organizations there was always some "5 pillars of Success" or some bullshit catchphrase that was going to make a difference. Well it didn't. And I'm not sure that a brand new building is going to make any difference if nothing else changes.
There's talk about how will they staff it. Well that's easy. The days of the independent family doctor are over. St. Lukes and LVHN have forced just about all (if not all) the Family Doctors to join the club. So when the time comes St. Lukes and LVHN will have no trouble telling their doctors to pack your ass in the car and head up to the Carbon Campus. Nurses, shoot, we don't need no stinking nurses. We'll just split the staff we have now - done. Don't believe me - just watch. Technical staffing might have some shortfall. The rest of the staff you could find good people here that would be happy to have a job.
And after all that I still think you have to give it a shot. Might make for a good Master's Thesis either way it works out.