Saint Clare's spokesman Joseph Vitale said hospital officials had agreed that if demand at the Denville facility exceeds its 206-bed capacity, Saint Clare's would look to reactivate acute care beds in Dover rather than expand in Denville. Citing that promise and the agreement by the hospital to name a Dover resident to its board of directors, Newman said he was prepared to accept those concessions. But the coalition will probably reject it. Goldfinger maintains that once Dover terminates acute care, those services will not return. Once they close Dover down for acute care, it will never reopen.
Doctors change their patterns, patients change where they go.
I think it's highly unlikely it will reopen in the future. The coalition also is upset with an attempt by Saint Clare's to maintain an emergency room at Dover without on-site acute care. While such an arrangement is not approved by current state guidelines, Health Commissioner Christine Grant said in February the state would consider approving the creation of free-standing emergency rooms provided they are linked to a hospital facility. The department yesterday published proposed guidelines for satellite emergency rooms, which are now subject to public comment, McGowan said. Saint Clare's and Memorial Medical Center in South Amboy have both expressed interest in establishing such facilities.