MADISON (WKOW) — The health care facility closures continue in the Chippewa Valley.
HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls were slated to close Friday. The Sacred Heart closure was originally supposed to happen in late April.
“That’s probably one of our biggest struggles right now, is how do we replace those,” said Dave Minor, the President/CEO of the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce. “You don’t just open up an emergency room for a hospital as a standalone operation, you have to have other services.”
Minor is part of the task force created by community leaders in the Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, and Menomonie areas in response to the closures announced in January.
Dave Minor, the President/CEO of the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce, is part of the task force created by community leaders in the Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, and Menomonie areas in response to the closures announced in January.
“We know it’s going to be a struggle, but everybody connected to those is looking for solutions: from the paramedics to the hospitals themselves,” said Minor. “In working alongside with Mayo Clinic, with Marshfield Clinic on independent conversations, they are looking at how can they expand their emergency room facilities and staffing.”
Minor said as they work through this, people are going to be dealing with longer ER wait times.
In the meantime, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has urged the…
Read the full article here
