Medical Park
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Specter and Rendell came to ceremony
Gov. Edward Rendell, Sen. Arlen Spector, and other political leaders were at hand for a ribbon cutting ceremony on Oct. 21, which marked the opening of Woman's Medical Hospital (WMH), the medical facility once known as MCP Hospital.
"This is a great day for this community, for this city, and for this state," Spector said. Over 100 physicians, staff, and supporters also attended the event, and red ribbon hung not only across the stage area, but also around the entire perimeter of the 12-acre site.
Dr. Nancy Pickering, a cardiologist at the former MCP Hospital who led the efforts to save the hospital, said, "Our beloved hospital has continued to remain open...in order to continue our mission, as well as to honor our heritage of being the first institution in the United States that allowed women from both this country as well as around the world to train and graduate.
"We have taken back our name," she said. "We will henceforth be called Woman's Medical Hospital."
The opening comes after Pickering recruited a coalition of physicians, staff, lawyers, politicians, and community leaders who fought to keep the medical facility in East Falls from closing when Tenet Healthcare Corp. announced plans to shut MCP in Dec. 2003.
At one point, Pickering went door-to-door to ask for the support of the community. Her efforts brought her to the doorsteps East Falls residents, Rendell and Spector.
"When Dr. Nancy Pickering came to my house in East Falls on one Saturday morning, I thought it was somebody to collect for paper delivery," Spector said. "She rang the doorbell, and I answered and listened to what she had to say, and I was very impressed by it."
In May, Rendell and Spector provided critical support when they endorsed the plan Pickering and others - the "doctor's group" - had developed. The parties worked together, negotiating with Tenet to arrange for the sale of the hospital facility and the 12-acre site on which it stands for $1. The transaction was made on Sept. 1, with the establishment of new state-affiliated nonprofit organization, WMCH Inc.
But as plans to save the hospital were being made, Tenet removed several expensive pieces of hospital equipment over the past few months, including a robot used to perform intricate surgical procedures, and television and video camera equipment from at least one operating room. The transition also caused the facility to lose its Level I trauma facility, at least for the time being.
Gov. Rendell recognized the risks many physicians took when deciding to stay aboard while Pickering and others worked to save the hospital and
"It would have been very easy - and you know because some of your colleagues did it - when trouble was apparent and this looked like it was going under, for all of you to cut and run," Rendell said. "But you believed in the mission of this great hospital and...you hung in there, and your resoluteness was what made it possible."
Rendell echoed statements he made when the transaction took place, praising the team effort that led to the accomplishment, but warning that the non-profit institution still has many hurdles to clear.
"A lot of struggles and a lot of our challenges and battles lie ahead," he said. "The efforts of all of us combined have given us the restoration of a pretty great hospital, if we can keep it. We all have to dedicate ourselves to do everything in our power to make sure that this hospital grows and this facility grows to have resources that serve people from all over Philadelphia."
One person who was somewhat overlooked in resuscitation of the hospital was publicly recognized at last Thursday's ribbon cutting ceremony - Ralph Winder, the 38th Ward Leader. Rendell said Winder could serve as an example of what a good ward leader should be, recognizing Winder's commitment as effective link between our community and Harrisburg.
Winder addressed the crowd, emphasizing the hard work done by all the parties involved. "None of us could have done this without all of us," he said. "We turned a nightmare into a dream...We must not ever forget the little people in the community and the people who walk the halls of this hospital who ignited and maintained this struggle."
HARTFORD -- Aetna (NYSE:AET) announced today a new program that provides consumers with discounts of 10 percent to 50 percent off the cost of routine health care expenses such as doctor visits and certain health care services, discounts of 10 percent to 40 percent off the average wholesale price of prescription medications, and a unique pre-paid debit card feature.
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Most patients report that overall the anticipation of the cardiac catheterization was much worse than the actual procedure.
Laboratories and classrooms have become storage spaces at a university hospital where orders for dizzying amounts of drugs and medical equipment continue to flood the faculty. 