Regarding William Kenny’s story in the Dec. 6 edition on Frankford Hospital’s Heart Center (Their hearts a-thumpin’), Frankford’s renovation announcement came at the same time that Northeast Philadelphia citizens at a town meeting were voicing concerns that women are laboring in hospital hallways due to overcrowded conditions since all four local hospitals previously offering obstetrics — Frankford, Parkview, Nazareth and Jeanes — chose to close their OB units or the entire hospital.

As William Kenny noted in his article, Frankford’s look at the age demographics of the area assured them that "the need for cardiac care will continue to grow." As families move out or avoid the Northeast because of no maternity services, an aging demographic may indeed be inevitable. Furthermore, with more than 5,000 births every year in the Northeast alone, any rationale of closures due to lacking demand is questionable.

Another excellent cover story in the same edition of the Northeast Times reviews the maternity crisis resulting from high malpractice, low Medicaid reimbursement, and difficulty recruiting skilled practitioners — all issues overcome by the new cardiac care department at Frankford. Can Frankford share the formula for expanding services despite barriers that have proved fatal to obstetrics? Ironically, the hearts will be attended to in space previously used to deliver babies.

Frankford used operating funds to finance the expansion where their heart patients can walk a mere 15 feet from diagnosis to comprehensive care. Meanwhile, women in Northeast Philadelphia could spend up to an hour on public transportation, or a half-hour by car (non-rush hour) to give birth. What is not clear is Frankford’s choice of hearts over babies since by its own admission both choices share the same problems (high malpractice, low reimbursement, etc). We would love hospitals to be able to use their operating costs to make obstetrical care as available as heart surgery — and not choose between old hearts and new.

Sue Rosenthal
Chairwoman, community board of District 10 Health Center

Letty Thall
Director of public policy, Maternity Care Coalition