BUFFALO, N.Y. — Hospitals in Western New York are already beginning to see the affects after Catholic Health limited some services at South Buffalo Mercy Hospital due to a possible strike.
Mercy Hospital has suspended labor and delivery, as well as diverting ambulances from the ER at Mercy. There's also no elective surgeries as of Wednesday at Mercy. Ambulances are also being diverted from the Mercy Ambulatory Care Center (MACC).
Kaleida Health, which operates several hospitals in WNY, says they are already beginning to see the affects of the reduction of services at Mercy Hospital.
In a release sent to the news media, Kaleida says they are seeing more cardiac and stroke patients at Gates Vascular Institute that were diverted from Mercy Hospital, and they are preparing for additional deliveries at Oishei Children's Hospital.
“We are hopeful that the impact on operations for area hospitals amid Catholic Health’s labor dispute is minimal,” said Bob Nesselbush, CEO of Kaleida Health. “That said, it is important to point out that we intend to remain open and provide access to services across our organization. We are adding resources, recruiting additional personnel, and going through considerable scenario planning to address this. We are doing our very best to be there for the community.”
Kaleida says patients should expect long wait times for the Emergency Room.
Nesselbush says they will monitor the influx of patients and keep a balance of patients at other hospitals, which include: Buffalo General, Millard Fillmore Suburban, DeGraff Medical Park, and ECMC when needed.
To help reduce the volume at local hospitals, Kaleida encourages people in need of health care to first consult with their primary care provider for medical direction, utilize urgent care centers or telemedicine services.