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Posted
Nov. 8, 2002
| Doctor
Says New Loudoun Hospital Vitally Important |
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To the editor:
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| I am a physician in a small private practice in Ashburn,
near the proposed site for the HCA replacement hospital. Our
office with two physicians and one nurse practitioner is extremely
busy and our patient load is growing every month, a reflection
of the continued influx of residents into Ashburn. |
| From the time I was very young, I wanted to be a physician.
My approach to healthcare is as close to the old-time family
doctor as current constraints will allow. I am very concerned
because I see how the population explosion in Loudoun County
is overwhelming the health care system. When overcrowding
is consistent, as it is at Loudoun Hospital, patient care
suffers and nurses and other hospital staff burnout. |
| I have privileges at both Loudoun Hospital and at Reston
Hospital. There is a national health care crisis: health care
shortages, skyrocketing insurance premiums for patients and
for physicians, un-insured and temporarily out of work individuals
who have lost insurance with layoffs. We are all in this together
and we need to think and plan strategically to address the
current and ongoing needs of our community. |
| The proposed Broadlands Regional Medical Center would provide
residents of Loudoun County a combination of existing services
that do not meet the capacity needed and additional services
that are not currently available locally. |
| We need Broadlands Regional Medical Center now. Loudoun
County has outgrown the concept that one hospital can be everything
to everyone. We need more beds, more emergency room space
and access and we need more operating rooms. If my practice
is any indication, and I am sure it is, we cannot simply monitor
the healthcare utilization for a few more years. We need the
proposed replacement hospital to break ground as soon as possible
to bring much needed services before we experience further
deficits as the population continues to grow. We should recognize
the lessons learned the last few times Loudoun residents asked
for more hospital beds. |
| Building a new hospital is the most decisive method of addressing
Loudoun¯s Healthcare deficits. HCA has provided quality healthcare
services to Loudoun County residents through Reston Hospital
since 1986. We are fortunate to have the opportunity for HCA
to build a hospital within Loudoun County to ease the overcrowding
and bring new services and physician specialties. The combination
of Loudoun Hospital, Reston Hospital and Broadlands Regional
Hospital would provide a local solution to local healthcare
needs. |
| James Ditaranto, D.O. |
| Ashburn |
Copyright © 2003 The Herndon Publishing
Company
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