What gap in services would occur in central Indiana if Wishard closed its doors?
Immediately, other hospitals’ emergency rooms would be flooded, EMS response times countywide would be compromised and emergencies requiring an adult Level I Trauma Center would be jeopardized. Cost of care would rise, wait times would balloon and Wishard’s outreach programs geared toward making central Indiana’s population healthier and reducing our county’s cost would end. In short, Wishard’s closure would have a wide-reaching and long-lasting impact on quality of life in central Indiana. In other cities, such as Washington, D.C., after the public hospital closed, several other hospitals also closed because they could not absorb the additional uninsured patients. How will Wishard continue to provide care for the next five to seven years if the facilities are in such a state of crisis? Now, the hospital is able to use bandages to deal with these problems, but soon, it will have to use tourniquets. Wishard is already dealing with system failures, compromised facilities and higher cost
