Posted on: Saturday, February 16, 2002
Maui presses hospital improvement
By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau
WAILUKU, Maui — The medical community is mobilizing to lobby state lawmakers to pay for $38 million in proposed improvements to Maui Memorial Medical Center, the island's only acute-care hospital with an emergency room.
"We haven't had any renovations in quite a few years, and we're falling behind,'' said Dr. George Talbot, chief of staff at the hospital, which is licensed for 196 beds. "The population is growing and we're not doing anything about it.''
The improvements, which are included in Gov. Ben Cayetano's economic revitalization proposal, include expanding the intensive care unit, creating additional room for outpatient surgeries and a long-sought parking garage.
The Maui medical community celebrated two years ago after the Legislature approved a $38 million revenue bond covering those projects, but it was held up by financial losses suffered by Hawai'i Health Systems Corp., the public corporation that oversees Maui Memorial and a number of other state health facilities.
Today, the financing is far from certain, having to compete in the Legislature with a new site for the University of Hawai'i medical school and other proposals.
But the Maui medical community is starting to be heard. In recent weeks, doctors have been engaging in a letter-writing campaign, and hospital nurses and nursing faculty and students from Maui Community College have been gathering signatures for a petition.
A rally was held yesterday in front of the state and county buildings in Wailuku. There's also a plan to rally at the State Capitol.
Talbot said the $38 million in improvements were identified as an immediate priority in the hospital's 20-year master plan developed four years ago.
"We're constantly overloaded with more patients that we can handle,'' he said.
Just last week, the emergency room was pushed beyond its limits during several periods when patients had to wait hours in a holding area before being assigned to a bed. Talbot said it's an increasing occurrence.
"It's frustrating,'' said Anne Trygstad, nurse case manager at Maui Memorial. "The hospital still provides excellent care but we're dealing with many challenges. It simply needs to expand.''
