HMC Hospitals in Hawaii to Close, Nearly 1,000 Jobs Lost

I've actually been surprised by the number of recent stories about layoffs in the medical profession. Here is one from Hawaii that appeared over the weekend:

The operators of bankrupt Hawaii Medical Center hospitals in Liliha and Ewa plan to close the facilities within three weeks, putting nearly 1,000 people out of work and eliminating more than 340 hospital beds.

The closures would affect the region's economy with the loss of 990 jobs, the Honolulu Star Advertiser reported Saturday ( ). Also, there would be a dramatic impact on health care.

HMC provides dialysis services and operates the only organ transplant center in the Pacific, while the Ewa facility is the only full-service emergency hospital in West Oahu, the newspaper said.

With the planned closure, the 150 patients in the two hospitals will have to be moved or discharged.

State officials are hoping a buyer or buyers can be found to keep the facilities running.

"Our understanding is there are still lingering interested parties," said Donalyn Dela Cruz, spokeswoman for Gov. Neil Abercrombie. "There are interested parties looking to reopen the facilities. If and when that occurs, the state will expedite that process."

Because so many health care workers will be losing their jobs, they'll likely have a difficult time finding new employment, according to health officials.

For a small state like Hawaii this has to be devastating. It's difficult to get a handle on exactly what is causing the financial troubles in the health care industry, but stories such as these put the lie to the notion asserted by clueless politicos that such jobs are the wave of the future as the economy "recovers."