26
THE HEALTH OF COUNTY RESIDENTS
PLANNING ISSUE
As health care needs have
changed and a growing senior
population seeks increased
medical attention, more
flexibility in treatment options
(such as the rise in
ambulatory surgery centers)
may need to fill this care gap.
Health Data and Health Concerns
Health Care Facilities
Aging
Food Distribution and Access
What’s New
•
Montgomery Hospital & Medical Center, formerly of
Norristown, found a new home in East Norriton and
a new affiliation with Einstein Medical Center.
Einstein Medical Center Montgomery opened in
September 2012, the first new hospital to be built in
the state in more than a decade. With 146 patient
beds, it operates as a full service acute care hospital.
•
Although Abington Health recently called off a
proposed (and controversial) merger with Holy
Redeemer Health System, it is expected that more
mergers will occur as health care operating costs
continue to rise.
•
Major expansions are underway or have recently
wrapped up at several area facilities. Lankenau
Medical Center is proceeding with an expansion
scheduled to wrap up in 2014. This will increase the
total patient beds to 386, increase parking capacity,
and add a new 5-story pavilion to the site. The Bryn
Mawr Medical Arts Pavilion, a 141,000 square foot
facility with the Bryn Mawr Hospital among its
tenants and a connection to the hospital’s main
building, was scheduled for completion in 2012.
•
There are resources in Montgomery County for those
residents with medical assistance coverage or without
any health insurance. The county is home to two
federally qualified health centers—the Norristown
Regional Health Center and Community Health and
Dental Care (in Pottstown)—which provide primary
health care to residents with medical assistance or no
health insurance. There are also some providers of
oral health care services in the county, though not
enough to meet demand for this care. Lastly, the
Montgomery County Health Department has three
public health clinic locations in Norristown,
Pottstown, and Willow Grove. These clinics offer
services such as sexually transmitted disease
screening and treatment, HIV testing and counseling,
and childhood and adult immunizations.
Health Care Facilities
Health facilities in the county exist within three categories:
general acute care hospitals, specialty hospitals, and
ambulatory care centers.
General acute care hospitals
are licensed by the state’s
Department of Health. In the county, there are currently 9
general acute care hospitals with more than 2,100 beds set up
and staffed, though these numbers shifted within the last
year when Norristown’s Montgomery Hospital shut its doors
and reopened in a new facility in East Norriton Township.
Smaller hospitals outside of the county, like Phoenixville
Hospital, Chestnut Hill Hospital, or Grand View Hospital,
also provide services to county residents. The occupancy
rate at the county’s general acute care hospitals is 64.9%.
This is relatively low and a drop from the 2001 levels—as
well as an indication that there is a surplus of hospital beds
in county hospitals. The average length of stay at hospitals in
the county is 4.38 days. The use of (and length of stays in)
acute care hospitals has declined over the years because of
managed health care, government cost cutting, and improved
medical procedures, which allow people to heal and return
home faster.
Specialty hospitals
are also licensed by the state’s
Department of Health. In Montgomery County, these
include psychiatric facilities as well as drug and alcohol
treatment centers.
The number of beds set up and staffed at
specialty hospitals in the county declined to less than 1,000
beds by 2011, a drop from levels a decade prior. Like
general hospitals, specialty hospitals have been affected by
cost cuts, and the trend of deinstitutionalizing patients at
these types of facilities has lessened their need across the
county.
Ambulatory surgery centers
speak to the rapid rise in
outpatient services available in the county. An ambulatory
surgery center provides day-surgery services for patients
who require less than 24-hour medical attention. These are
typically stand-alone facilities, which may be affiliated with
or owned by a hospital. As of June 2011, there were 26
ambulatory care centers in the county, a huge increase from
the 9 facilities that served the county in 2001.
