BOSTON (WHDH) - Dozens of parents, doctors and nurses protested outside of Tufts Medical Center Saturday, calling on the hospital’s corporate owner to stop its plans to shutter its pediatric hospital and take away treatment options for children.
“You shouldn’t be fooling around with Boston number one, you shouldn’t be fooling around with kids and mothers number two,” said Tim O’Connell, of Tommy’s Place Foundation. “That shouldn’t even be on the table.”
The hospital’s corporate owner, the Wellforce Health System, announced two weeks ago that it plans to convert the 41 pediatric inpatient beds at the facility to adult beds later this year. Doctors said they were blindsided by the decision and are asking the state to block the deal.
Tufts plans to refer pediatric patients in need of specialty care to Boston Children’s Hospital, which would need approval from regulators. But parents said they can only get certain treatments at Tufts, and their kids have no other options if the beds are converted.
“The tragedy of Tufts closing is that there is no other hospital on the East Coast with a specialty team able to prescribe and administer immune treatment on site,” said parent Amanda Crowley.
In a statement, a hospital spokesperson said they are committed to patient care and are trying to make sure children can see their same doctor with the same insurance.
“This includes outpatient appointments with trusted Tufts primary care and specialty care pediatricians and nurses, day surgery, and one of the region’s largest, most respected neonatal intensive care units,” the spokesperson said. “Our collaboration with Boston Children’s will ensure that when a child needs to stay overnight, they will have excellent care.”
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