Brownsville General Hospital

History

Brownsville was founded in 1785, and grew into an important industrial center, serving initially as a boat-building center for those heading westward along the Monongahela and Ohio rivers, then as a hub of operations for the Monongahela Railway. It then became an important coal and coking center before slowly declining in the rust belt, or perpetual industrial deterioration that has led to major population and economic losses.

But during the heyday of Brownsville, the population was burgeoning. People who were injured were sent to McKeesport or Fairmont, but both were fairly lengthy commutes via rail or boat, and was inconvenient. In 1908, the Reverend E. M. Bowman and a band of local citizens and medical professionals began work on a plan for a hospital in the borough.(5)(7) In 1910, the group secured a charter from the state for a new hospital, which read: “The hospital is to care for those injured in accidents in the coal mines, coke ovens, railroads, and other industrial enterprises, regardless of race, sect or creed.” (7)

A fund-raising campaign was held, bringing in $10,000 towards the construction of the facility.(7) A location was chosen at Fifth Avenue and Church Street, the site of the former Brownsville Public School which was now demolished. The vacant land was purchased and fund-raising continued. A second fund-raising drive brought in $32,000, and several government appropriations were secured, but it was still not enough to construct the entire building. But seeing the dire need for a hospital, a contract was awarded to the Charleroi Lumber Company with the provision that construction would continue as long as the money remained in the bank account.

The hospital was in such demand that the facility began admitting patients in July 1914 despite the building being under construction.(5)(7) The hospital was not completed until 1916, when an additional fund-raising campaign raised another $120,000 that allowed the building to be finished and a surgical ward constructed.(7) The grounds also contained a nurses home that opened in 1920.(8) It was not long before it became apparent that the nurses home was becoming overcrowded and unable to keep up with demand, handling as many as 40 nurses at a time.

Construction

In 1923, another fund-raiser was held, bringing in $100,000. Donations also poured in from various local industries and companies.(7) In 1926, Joseph Horner, partner in the Horner Coal Company, “bequeathed a large sum of money to Brownsville General Hospital” in his will when he passed away.(8) The donation of the money, over $100,000, lit the match for the construction of a larger nurses home across the street from the hospital. Work for the new building began in September 1928,(5)(8) and in late-July 1929, the Horner Memorial Nurses Home was dedicated.(8) It became known as the Brownsville General Hospital’s School of Nursing,(7) and was finished at a cost of $135,000 (fixtures added $15,000).(8)

The new nurses home was constructed of Indiana limestone and buff brick. The first floor contained ten bedrooms, a reception room that extended across the entire front of the building and two libraries. A Indiana limestone mantle was constructed at the west end of the parlor. The second and third floors are nearly identical, each containing 15 bedrooms, a large bathroom, and closets. The basement featured a gymnasium, demonstration room, lecture room, sewing room, kitchen, trunk room and boiler room. A sun porch was built on the roof of the home.

The School of Nursing operated until its closure in 1952.(6) A Brownsville General Hospital publication noted that it stopped training nurses because the preparation had become “academically oriented.”

After the School of Nursing closed, it became the Horner Memorial Nurses Home, a residence for some of the nurses who worked at the hospital across the road.(6) The home later became a long-term care facility for the elderly.

In April 1942, the hospital constructed a third level to the hospital, approximately 40-feet wide and 96-feet long.(13) Built over the central section of the building, the addition provided room for an additional 13 patients. Four private rooms were built, along with one semi-private room, wards and an operating room.

The need for a new hospital by the 1960s had become clear, when the General Hospital had the highest occupancy rate of any hospital in the state.(11) The 100-bed hospital in May 1960 was at 99.5% capacity, an increase from last year’s occupancy rate of 99.3%. The state recommendation at the time was that a hospital should only be 80% occupied, so that the remaining 20% be made available in an emergency event. The hospital also had a waiting list of 20 to 25 patients daily for surgery or treatment.

Relocation

On June 5, 1965, the new 40-bed Brownsville General Hospital was dedicated on Simpson Road, replacing the Brownsville General Hospital which had served the basin for 51 years.(2) But by the time the hospital had opened on the top of the hill, easily accessible to the planned U.S. Route 40 freeway, Brownsville was in a economic and population decline brought on by the decline of the steel industry and layoffs in the nearby coal mines. The old hospital was purchased by Frank Bock and was renovated into the Golden Age Nursing Home.(6)

Rumors circulated as early as October 1976 that the General Hospital, due to low patient intake numbers, was in danger of closing.(9) The rumors were shrugged off, although the obstetrical unit was shuttered due to low demand. In 1977, layoffs began due to low patient counts.(10) Of the  Only 42 beds were occupied, leaving 79 open. The employees were recalled back in the winter due to increased demand, but more layoffs occurred in 1978,(12)

In late 2004, the hospital faced two pressing issues that jeopardized its stability. The hospital was located in an aging building that had not been property maintained, and revenues were declining.(3) As a result, the non-profit board of the hospital solicited offers from groups and organizations for management of the facility. It eventually turned over the reins of the hospital to a group of doctors, which converted the hospital into a for-profit institution. One condition was passed, in that the non-profit board spent $150,000 in legal fees to ensure that in the event that the for-profit institution were to close, the hospital would remain open. The Brownsville General Hospital was renamed Tara Hospital.

On January 8, 2006, the Brownsville General Hospital closed due to financial difficulties and labor disputes, leaving 260 employees out of work.(1)(3) It was not until October 2007 that the non-profit board was able to regain control over the hospital due to bureaucracy. It was reopened on May 22, 2008 (4) by a community group as the Brownsville Tri-County Hospital, but was forced to close February 12, 2009 due to additional financial troubles. The hospital had $1.2 million in assets but liabilities of more than $14.3 million. The remaining 15 patients were transferred to other facilities.

The latest closure came just after winning a battle in bankruptcy court just the day prior. Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge McCullough granted Brownsville Property Corp., which owned the land and building for the hospital, an injunction that prevented foreclosure by trustee Robert Bernstein.(1) The injunction would remain in place until attorneys for Presidential Healthcare Credit Corp. appear in bankruptcy court. The company filed for a mortgage on the hospital property in December after allocating the hospital $2.5 million in short-term financing – a saving move that allowed the hospital to boast a stable cash flow while it worked out its liabilities.

Golden Age Nursing Home

After the Brownsville General Hospital relocated to its new location in 1965, the former hospital in the valley was converted into the Golden Age Nursing Home.(6)

In May 1983, two women, Wells and Snyder, visited Golden Age with an interest in placing a relative in the nursing home.(15) They were “appalled” by the conditions they found in the home on their visit, which lasted just fifteen minutes. Afterward, the two individuals sought attention to state and federal officials to complain about the Golden Age, writing to Pennsylvania Governor Richard Thornburgh, the state Secretary of Health, a state Senator, the HFCA, President Reagan, The United States Senate Special Committee on Aging, national and local television stations and Senator Heinz.

On May 30, 31 and June 1, 1984, a federal survey was conducted at the nursing home which uncovered serious violations. A follow-up shortly after by the state found other serious violations. As a result, the Medicare agreement with the nursing home was terminated, and in July, the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare notified the home that its termination from Medicare also necessitated the termination from Medicaid.(15) At that time, the Department of Health, based on the state and federal inspection records, suspended all new admissions to Golden Age. Brownsville was guilty of,

1. a serious violation of the provisions of the state Health Care Facilities Act and the regulations for licensure,
2. a cyclical pattern of deficiencies over a period of two or more years, and
3. a serious violation of laws relating to medical assistance and medicare reimbursement.

An appeal was heard in March 1985, and the State Health Facility Hearing Board ruled that the Department of Health had failed to prove its charges.(15) The license was reinstated in December 1985,(16) along with admissions into Golden Age and Medicare payments. The Department of Health appealed, and the Commonwealth Court overturned the Board’s decision. The license was again revoked, along with the Medicare payments.(14)

While the proceedings with the state Board were ongoing, Golden Age sought federal help and appealed the Medicare decertification.(15) An administrative law judge ordered that Golden Age’s Medicare reimbursement be restored, but when the Commonwealth Court overturned the state Board’s decision, the nursing home lost its Medicare payments.

As a result of the investigations, the nursing home owner, Frank Bock, sued four individuals in state court seeking $40,000 each in damages in April 1986.(14) Bock stated that the director of the division of Long-Term Care for the State Department of Health, Joyce McNamara, U.S. Senator John Heinz and two local women complained to the government about conditions at the nursing home after a tour in May 1983. Heinz was also the Chairman of the Senate’s Special Committee on Aging.(15) The suit alleged that the four defendants had conspired to interfere with Golden Age’s business. The complaint was moved to federal court after Senator Heinz filed a motion to dismiss in June. Afterward, Senator Heinz filed a motion for a summary judgement, followed by Wells and Snyder.