South Nassau considering options after FEMA pledges $154M

SNCH officials say demolition of the three oldest buildings on the campus will begin in the spring.

Photos courtesy South Nassau Communities Hospital

South Nassau has already demolished four vacant hospital-owned homes on Lincoln Boulevard and East State Street.

Photos courtesy South Nassau Communities Hospital

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More than two years after Hurricane Sandy shuttered the Long Beach Medical Center, its new owner, South Nassau Communities Hospital, is still considering options for a health care delivery model in Long Beach, which include the construction of a 24-hour emergency department, though exactly where — on the LBMC campus or elsewhere — has yet to be determined.

Last week, South Nassau officials told the Herald that the hospital was still looking into converting its urgent-care center, which opened last year on the medical center property, into a free-standing emergency department that could accept ambulances — at least temporarily, until a more permanent facility were constructed, either at LBMC’s West Wing, which housed the emergency department, or elsewhere in Long Beach.

Though plans do not include a full-service hospital — to the chagrin of many residents — the emergency department may include 20 to 30 beds for short-term care in order to hold patients until they are stabilized, before being transferred to South Nassau or a hospital of their choice.

“This past fall, just after we closed on the asset purchase agreement, we listed three options that will be contingent on what engineers recommend to us based on [the buildings’] assessment,” said Joe Calderone, South Nassau’s senior vice president of corporate communications and development. “We’re committed to a free-standing, 911-receiving emergency department in Long Beach. Where, exactly, and the timeline for that, is what’s being worked out currently.”

Local officials and residents continue to press the hospital for more details, however, and at rallies and community meetings, have argued that all $173 million in Sandy aid that was promised by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for repairs at SNCH be used in Long Beach. They have also called for public meetings with South Nassau and the state Department of Health for more than a year, and claim that LBMC’s closing remains a safety issue that has led to longer turnaround times for Fire Department ambulances, which are now forced to head to other area hospitals. South Nassau officials said they intend to hold a meeting in a month or so to discuss their plans.