Crime & Safety

Spotsy Regional Medical Center Campaigns For City Patients

Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center embarked on a mailing campaign to convince Fredericksburg residents to force change so that they can choose to which hospital they want an ambulance to deliver them.

Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center (SRMC) is playing hardball for Fredericksburg patients.

The for-profit, HCA-owned hospital has sent thousands of mailers to Fredericksburg residents urging them to contact Fire Chief Edwin Allen to tell him that city EMS squads should give patients a choice to come to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center.

"You should have the right to choose," the flier states in bold blue letters at the top.

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But the big question is could such a change in policy potentially put city residents at risk? Fredericksburg Fire Department spokesman Mike Jones said the policy is to take city patients to the closest hospital and that is Mary Washington Hospital. To take a patient to SRMC could take much more time and keep units out of service longer, he said.

"Let me say that no one has anything against Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center, it is a fine facility but our decision is based on resources," Jones said. "During the daylight hours Monday through Friday, we have only two ambulances staffed and available to handle emergency calls.

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"Last year those units handled well over 2,000 calls for service during those hours.  On nights and all weekends the Fredericksburg Rescue Squad usually has one ambulance staffed and available. During their normal hours of operations they handle at least the same number as the Fire Department ambulances did above, if not more."

The flier states that when SRMC opened in June 2010, it provided residents with a choice for the first time in 100 years. But Fredericksburg residents don't have the choice of which hospital they want to go to when a city ambulance picks them up.

"You can change that," the flier states.

Included with the flier is a mail in postcard that is self-addressed back to SRMC's marketing department. The flier also includes Chief Allen's email address and his phone number.

"Tell officials that the City of Fredericksburg EMS squads should give patients a choice to come to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center," the flier states.

The flier has two anonymous patient testimonials and information about SRMC's emergency room, services and other health care options. The mailer resembles something you would get from a candidate running for office, and in the same way they both try to serve the same purpose: a politician wants votes and SRMC wants patients.

Mary Washington Hospital is able to handle all types of injuries and illnesses and has the area's only stroke center and Level II Trauma Center, which the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons just recognized for its dedication to providing optimal care for injured patients. Mary Washington Hospital is the only Level II trauma center in Virginia to receive this verification and it is one of three Virginia trauma centers to receive ACS verification.

Jone said the city's fire and rescue services do not have the resources that could allow units to travel to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center because it would lengthen the time units would be out of service. For example, Jones said to travel from Heritage Park off Fall Hill Avenue to go to Mary Washington Hospital is two miles and would take about four minutes to pass through three controlled intersections. To travel from Heritage Park to SMRC, it would be nine miles and take about 20 minutes to travel through 22 controlled intersections.

"Controlled intersections are the number one place that emergency vehicles can be and are involved in vehicle accidents," Jones said. "Again within the city limits it is closer and less time to get to Mary Washington Hospital. When our units are requested to respond to calls in Spotsylvania County, especially in the Four Mile Fork or Southpoint areas, we have transported those patients to Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center in the past."

Mary Washington Healthcare served 377,050 patients in 2010 and according to a study the hospital recently released, every $1 spent by MWHC's 4,385 employees, $1.58 is spent locally. In other words, MWHC is a huge economic engine for the city and the region.

Fredericksburg Patch received the flier today in the mail. Did you get the flier? What do you think about it?


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