Local Officials Will Fight Closure of St. James Chicago Heights Facility

On December 4, Chicago Heights Mayor Gonzalez called for public hearings to address the planned closure of St. James Hospital Chicago Heights and movement of critical services to St. James Olympia Fields.

“Based on a brief meeting held yesterday with the Mayors of Crete, South Chicago Heights, Sauk Village, Glenwood, Ford Heights and Steger, local social service agencies, and the Police, Fire and EMT providers that support our communities, it has become evident that the elimination of emergency services and in-patient care at St. James Chicago Heights will have detrimental impacts throughout the region,” Gonzalez said.

The first hearing will be held Thursday, Dec. 10 at 3:30 p.m., at the Steger Community Center, 3501 Hopkins St. It is open to the public and will provide residents of Chicago Heights and the surrounding south suburban communities the opportunity to gain insight into the future of St. James Hospital and to have their concerns heard. Attendees will include Chicago Heights Mayor David A. Gonzalez, South Chicago Heights Mayor David L. Owen, Steger Mayor Kenneth A. Peterson, Jr., Crete Mayor Michael Einhorn, Glenwood Mayor Ronald Gardiner, Chicago Heights Fire Chief Thomas Kennedy, Steger Fire Chie Nowell Fillion, and more.

Gonzalez last week also announced the creation of the Health Services Task Force to address the impacts of closure. St. James Chicago Heights serves 30,000 residents of Chicago Heights, along with patients from areas including South Chicago Heights, Ford Heights, Steger, Crete, and Beecher.

“Over the last 100 years, countless lives have depended on St. James Hospital, and while the facility is in Chicago Heights, eliminating critical services will negatively impact tens of thousands of patients from South Chicago Heights, Ford Heights, Steger, Crete, Beecher and the surrounding communities,” said Mayor Gonzalez. “We understand the changing nature of the healthcare industry, but maintaining the health and safety of our residents, as well as the patients that rely on St. James Chicago Heights, is our priority. We have contributed significantly to its success, and in return, we expect more from them than to just walk away.”

The Task Force includes members of the State Legislature, representatives from education, social services, emergency services and business, and mayors from the surrounding area. The group will evaluate the closure’s impact on quality of life, patient needs, and the area’s economy, and develop mandates to ensure the continuation of critical healthcare services.

Over 40,000 patients are treated in the emergency room at St. James Chicago Heights annually. Of those, 18 percent are admitted to the hospital. Ambulance runs from Chicago Heights account for more than 3,000 emergency room trips each year.

“Beyond the displacement of patients requiring emergency services, the impact of this action will be felt by patients who rely on its Center for Rehabilitation, Sleep Disorders Lab, and the Women’s Unit and Lullaby Birthplace,” according to a press release from the City of Chicago Heights.

A number of community and service organizations serving high risk populations will also see a direct impact, Gonzalez argues. These include Aunt Martha’s, Harold Colbert Jones Memorial Center, Respond Now, Bloom Township Senior Services and Youth and Family Services, Southstar Services, and South Suburban PADS.

In October 2015, Franciscan announced a $137 million investment into St. James.

“It is disingenuous for them to say that investment includes St. James Chicago Heights when the only money it is leaving behind is designated for tearing down the hospital and providing a minimum of care,” Gonzalez said in a release. “This decision will endanger countless lives. ... The plans that Franciscan have shared with me show little more than parking lots in return for diminished healthcare options for this area. The last time I checked, parking lots don’t deliver babies; parking lots don’t take care of accident victims; and parking lots certainly don’t save lives.”

Franciscan Alliance, the not-for-profit organization that owns St. James, currently has more than $2.5 billion in assets, with a considerable amount having come from Chicago Heights and the surrounding communities.

St. James Hospital has been a cornerstone of the Chicago Heights community for more than 100 years and employs more than 1,300 doctors, nurses and other health services providers on staff.