The owners of Delaware County Memorial Hospital (DCMH) were taken to task Monday afternoon, hours after the Pennsylvania Department of Health closed the hospital’s emergency room and ordered hospital admissions to end Monday morning.

The health department cited a concern for patient safety from staffing shortages in making its decision.

Dr. Monica Taylor, chair of Delaware County Council, and Frances Sheehan, president of The Foundation for Delaware County, held a press conference outside the nearly vacant 110-bed hospital, which now has only five patients, writes Pete Bannan for the Daily Times.

 “It isn’t by chance that Prospect is now unable to adequately staff the hospital, which has resulted in the state shutting them down,” Taylor said.

The county and the Foundation successfully received a temporary injunction in Common Pleas Court to keep the acute care hospital open, also requiring that Prospect maintain sufficient staff in its emergency room.   

But Prospect wants DCMH closed and converted into a behavioral health facility, with the emergency room as an urgent care facility.

Crozer Health CEO Tony Esposito said the staffing shortages are real, with Crozer down 600 positions.

Sheehan said Prospect’s actions, including removing food service and support service employees from the hospital, show contempt for the court’s injunction.

Read more about the ongoing issues at DCMH in the Daily Times.