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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Glendale Hospital Eliminating Depts.

With the closure of two departments, a staff shakeup at Glendale Memorial Hospital is inevitable, particularly among the nurses there. In August, the hospital announced that both its Behavioral Health Services department and outpatient women’s clinic will cease operations Oct. 10. As many as 100 employees could be affected by the closures. “It’s just because census (number of patients) has been low in these areas and operating costs are high and insurance reimbursements have been low it makes more sense to let our patients utilize those services outside of the hospital,” explained Glendale Memorial Hospital senior marketing specialist Danielle Grossman. “These programs have provided outstanding service, but the majority of these services can be accessed elsewhere in the community.” The fate of nurses at the hospital remains uncertain, according to California Nurses Association labor representative Erik Macatuno. “They’re being offered an opportunity to work where they can (within the facility), but some of them are opting to go somewhere else,” he said. “It’s still unclear when it’s happening right now.” But Macatuno stressed that the departmental closures do not place nurses in professional peril of any sort. “They have a union contract that protects them in cases of this situation,” he said. Other staffers affected by the downsizing include a range of different types of technicians, medical assistants and administrative personnel. Grossman pointed out that a number of positive changes are taking place at the hospital as well, including new equipment, a multimillion dollar information systems upgrade, and renovation of two patient floors to include more private rooms. “We are growing services,” she said.

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