AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Hospital at Westlake Medical Center announced Friday it would be closing its emergency department that evening. Local emergency leaders said they were given little notice about the closure which could impact paramedics and nearby medical facilities.
A message to our ReportIt tip line said the center was closing abruptly Friday night. The hospital’s website confirmed its emergency department would be closed by 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 29.
Douglas Havron with the Capital Area of Texas Regional Advisory Council (CATRAC) said he became aware of the ER’s closing through local EMS. The CATRAC oversees trauma and emergency response across 11 counties, including Travis County.
A representative with Austin Travis County EMS said one of its ambulance crews was on route to transport a patient to the hospital Friday afternoon when it learned the ER would only be open for a few more hours.
Havron said CATRAC received the official documentation about the ER’s closure the same night it was ending operations. He said this is usually not the way closures are handled.
“We would prefer there be adequate notice to the public, adequate notice to our EMS partners, and adequate notice to the other hospitals that might be absorbing that volume,” Havron said.
The Hospital at Westlake Medical Center issued a statement about the closure. It said “As part of our ongoing restructuring efforts, we have made the difficult decision to close the emergency room for now. We promptly informed all necessary agencies about this change and will maintain open communication on any further developments.”
The “restructuring” mentioned in the statement refers to the hospital’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2023. The filing was also mentioned in the hospital’s social media post about its ER closure.
The Link LonkJanuary 03, 2024 at 05:56AM
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Westlake hospital closes ER with little notice, emergency leaders say - KXAN.com
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