Is Beebe expansion a foregone conclusion?
A recent news story in the Cape Gazette about Beebe Healthcare could not have been timed better for emphasis. The front-page article explained Beebe’s hiring of a consultant to look at recent and projected future growth in the medical facility and projected growth in Beebe’s Sussex County service area.
While readers were absorbing the information, the steady flow of ambulances heading to and from Beebe’s Savannah Road complex in Lewes took occasional breaks. There was no lull in the number of people needing care and transportation. Rather, there are so many sick people needing attention that they have filled the hospital’s rooms to capacity. Ambulance services have been advised from time to time recently to divert patients elsewhere until the sick population settles down.
The immediate problem is that flu season is heavy upon us and the majority of the cases being reported in Delaware are in Sussex County. Beebe has temporarily banned patient visitors under the age of 16 to avoid having them contracting flu and to avoid having them bring illness into the hospital.
The longer-term issue is population growth in Sussex County. Much of the growth involves people moving in to retire. Retired people tend to be older people and older people tend to require more medical services.
The presence of Beebe and its reputation as a quality-oriented organization is one of many factors that make people comfortable about retiring here.
Despite Beebe’s laudable efforts to promote healthy lifestyles and take aggressive prevention measures such as offering free flu vaccinations, people are still getting sick and more people means more need for care.
Beebe’s need for expansion could hardly be more evident. Among the largest questions is whether - given Beebe’s heavy investment in Lewes - it makes sense to build out the limited remaining space in town or look to its more spacious and centrally located campus on Rt. 24 for additional inpatient facilities.
The consultant’s report is due in January.
It will be interesting to see what an outside view recommends for our community-owned hospital.
