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Report of the Committee on Public Health and Public Safety
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Official Text
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEEON PUBLIC HEALTH AND PUBLIC SAFETYThe Committee on Public Health and Public Safety convened on April 26, 2010, with Chairman William White presiding and Committee Member Aldermen Dennis Sullivan (appointed for this meeting only) also present and voting. Also present were Aldermen Bruce Desmond and Maryann Heuston, who recused herself, as well as Administrative Assistant Matt Dias, Superintendent of Inspectional Services Ed Nuzzo, Barry Hilts - VP Facilities - Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), David Farmer from CHA, Dr. John Brusch from CHA, Allison Bayer - Chief Operating Officer - CHA, Dr. David Osler from CHA, Dr. Assaad Sayah from CHA and Ward 2 resident Juliet Borja.188087 - Recent service reductions by the Cambridge Health Alliance:Alderman Sullivan related instances of scheduling problems at CHA?s Somerville campus and also discussed delays in getting appointments.Ms. Bayer discussed the proposed plans for the Somerville campus and told the members that there would no longer be in-patient services at that facility and that patients will be transferred to the Cambridge campus as needed. Improvements are being made to the Somerville campus in the neighborhood of $4 to $5 million dollars and the in-patient areas will be converted to offices. The bulk of renovations will be in the medical arts building. Other improvements include valet parking and improved signage. The expanded primary care practice will relocate to the 2nd floor of the medical arts building. CHA expects to have 50,000 visitors annually when the work is completed and there will be 350-450 employees. Ms. Bayer told the members that CHA has contracts with all health insurance carriers and also services non-insured patients.Dr. Sayah discussed the Emergency Departments at the Somerville Hospital and told the members that it provides better service than most hospitals in the country. To start with, many of the employees are mulit-lingual and the facility?s emergency room process places every patient in a bed with an average time of 14 minutes for a patient to be seen. The Emergency Department was rated #1 in the state with the quality of care provided measured in the 98th to 99th percentile, as rated by patients. The Emergency Department has worked with the Fire Department and EMS to prepare for mass casualty and catastrophic situations. Dr. Sayah explained how he could draw support from other departments to help the Somerville Emergency Department and also discussed the circumstances that would cause a patient to be transferred to the Cambridge facility when in-patient services are needed. About 1,000 patients per year are transported from Somerville to Cambridge and there are no cases of a patient dying during transit. Dr. Osler discussed primary care and said that there will be 45,000 visits at the Broadway location this year, bringing the total number of visits to CHA?s Somerville sites to 100,000 this year. Open Access has been implemented, phone services have been improved and 10 new primary care doctors will be hired this year.Dr. Brusch discussed health care for the senior population and the community?s responsibility to work with the hospital to promote healthy living. Dr. Brusch also addressed delivering services where seniors congregate, working with the Somerville Health Department and the city?s Senior Center, the future in medical care for seniors and ways that the hospital will accommodate seniors. Dr. Brusch discussed the importance of senior social spheres and said that there is an adult day program in Cambridge that is paid for by Medicare and Medicaid and is a way to keep people out of nursing homes. Mr. Hilts discussed the parking arrangements at the hospital including parking lots, planned drop offs and senior discount parking programs. Ms. Bayer told the members that the Former Central Hospital on Central Street* is owned by CHA and that facilities maintenance and other departments would be moved to that location. The committee discussed the changes to health care that will be implemented in 2014 and how they might impact the health care budget and the quality of care provided. Ms. Borja discussed concerns about the lack of green space at the hospital.515 Somerville Avenue:Chairman White requested that the entire ISD file on this property be brought to the next meeting of the committeeNo papers were acted on.