Dec. 12--Experts say it is too soon to tell just how a Carbondale hospital's impending closure will impact access to health care services throughout the Upvalley, though several are hopeful that new services will spring up to fill the void.
Late last month, Maxis Health Systems officials announced that Marian Community Hospital would close by Feb. 28 after struggling with financial pressures and dwindling patient demand. And while the number of services the hospital has been able to sustain has also dwindled over the years, the hospital's closure will mean that patients throughout the Upvalley will likely have to travel farther for access to certain types of care.
Meanwhile, the region and the nation are struggling to cope with an ongoing doctor shortage that will likely get worse as baby boomers age.
The federal government has identified 53 municipalities across the region -- including Carbondale, Carbondale Twp. and Fell Twp. -- as having shortages in primary care doctors, according to the state Department of Health. The designation examines demographics, mortality rates, access to health care providers and income levels, according to state officials.
Figures compiled in 2006, the most recent year available, by the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice show that the Greater Scranton area has about 68 primary care physicians for every 100,000 residents. The national average is about 80 per 100,000 residents, according to the Dartmouth Institute.
"It's clear we have a serious problem with access to care," said Robert E. Wright, M.D., the president of the Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education in Scranton. "People have trouble getting appointments to see doctors."
Many experts agree that it is unlikely that doctors who have practices in the Upvalley will relocate after Marian Community Hospital closes, experts said. But they will have to find other hospitals to take their patients, order tests and perform procedures. Carbondale physician Matthew Haley, D.O., opened Haley Family Practice 13 years ago and treats more than 1,000 patients. Marian Community's closure means he will have to align with one of Scranton's hospitals.
"Right now, I only have hospital privileges at Marian," he said, explaining that the Carbondale hospital is almost always where he referred patients. "You have to have places for your people to go, but it means patients will have a longer ride to get hospital care."
Dr. Haley and other experts in the region are also concerned about how Marian Community Hospital's closure will impact access to specialists.
Like with primary care physicians, the region has much lower numbers of specialists than elsewhere in the nation.
The Dartmouth Institute data show Scranton has about 116 specialists per 100,000 residents, compared to the national average of 127 specialists per 100,000 residents.
Among the specialists needed in the Upvalley especially are general surgeons, urologists and orthopedic surgeons, Dr. Haley said. And it will likely be harder to attract doctors without a hospital as an anchor, said Martin Ciccocioppo, vice president of research for Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania.
"The medical liability climate is still difficult in the state," he said. "Many physicians are looking for hospital to acquire their practices or hire them to lessen worries about (affording) medical malpractice insurance."
But other experts remain hopeful that there will be creative solutions reached to fill the void left by Marian's closure, including Gerald Tracy, M.D., a retired cardiologist and associate dean for regional campus development at The Commonwealth Medical College in Scranton.
"We'll see outpatient facilities develop in Carbondale to meet the needs there," from doctors' offices to laboratory and other outpatient services, Dr. Tracy said.
Dr. Tracy and other TCMC staff also believe the medical college will play a role in meeting those needs. Part of TCMC's mission is to train primary care physicians who will stay in the region after graduation.
Together with strong residency programs offered locally by the Wright Center, many experts said the ongoing primary care physician shortage will likely lessen within the next decade.
"In the Scranton area, there's great promise for development," said Molly Talley, director of resident and student initiatives for the Pennsylvania Academy of Family Physicians. "The Wright Center is really bucking the national trend because of an innovative curriculum."
Contact the writer: enissley@timesshamrock.com
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