thedrifter
01-14-09, 08:33 PM
Henderson clinic closing due to antiterrorism standards
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January 14, 2009 - 6:30 PM
JENNIFER HLAD
The Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital's Henderson clinic must close by the end of 2009 because the building does not meet federal antiterrorism standards, according to hospital officials.
"It is out of our local control," said Capt. Gerard Cox, the commanding officer of the Naval Hospital.
While Cox renewed the lease on the clinic for this year, he said he is prohibited from renewing it beyond that.
The standards for government-owned and government-leased property - strengthened after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks - include regulations about the distance from a building to its parking lot, the presence of barriers or security fences and other safety measures, Cox said. The building on Henderson Drive that houses the Family Medicine and OB/GYN satellite clinic does not conform to the rules.
And when the hospital searched the area for other available property or real estate developers who would be willing to build suitable property in the area, they came up empty handed, Cox said.
"We are still looking," he said, but added that the search does not look promising.
The hospital asked the Department of Defense for a waiver, but was turned down, he said.
About 700 of the Henderson clinic's patients are military retirees and their families, Cox said. The roughly 1,100 others are family members of active-duty service members.
All the patients will have the chance to choose whether they would like to be moved to the Naval Hospital at Camp Lejeune, the Family Medicine Clinic at New River Air Station or a civilian doctor. All of the employees at the Henderson clinic, located at 3280-C Henderson Drive, will be moved to other locations, Cox said.
"Nobody's going to be let go," he said. "The same need for health care services will exist, we will just have to (meet that need) in a different location."
Barbara and Charles Treble live just a few minutes away from the clinic and use it several times a month, Barbara Treble said. The couple is upset to hear it will close.
"We like it so much," Barbara Treble said. "It's so convenient. It's so inconvenient to go to the base, to the commissary."
For senior citizens, parking and walking into the hospital or the exchange just to pick up a prescription refill can be "a real chore," she said.
Dennis Aschbrenner also said he enjoys the convenience of the clinic, which he uses to pick up prescriptions. He had hoped they would accept some new prescriptions so he could avoid going to base entirely.
"It's a very convenient place, and it's providing a service to far more people than the general numbers would appear," he said.
Aschbrenner wrote a letter to The Daily News about the clinic closure, and said he received a lot of positive feedback, including from a disabled veteran who has difficulty with transportation.
"It's bad enough that our benefits have been cut so much," Aschbrenner said. "Once you do your time, it seems like we become the forgotten group."
The hospital is still looking into the possibility of opening a standalone off-base pharmacy to replace the pharmacy at the Henderson clinic, Cox said, but officials have not found a suitable location. Beneficiaries also have the option of using the pharmacy at the Naval Hospital, the satellite pharmacy at the Marine Corps Exchange, or ordering prescriptions by mail.
The Naval Hospital is in the midst of an expansion project, but the new construction will not be completed by the time the clinic must be closed, Cox said. While the family practice and pediatrics clinics already offer expanded hours, the hospital will explore expanding the hours at other clinics if necessary.
Beneficiaries with questions about the closure, or any other hospital-related issue, are invited to attend one of the hospital's quarterly town hall meetings, at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. today in classrooms A and B at the hospital.
Contact interactive content editor and military reporter Jennifer Hlad at jhlad@freedomenc.com or 910-219-8467.
Ellie
Comments 2 | Recommend 0
January 14, 2009 - 6:30 PM
JENNIFER HLAD
The Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital's Henderson clinic must close by the end of 2009 because the building does not meet federal antiterrorism standards, according to hospital officials.
"It is out of our local control," said Capt. Gerard Cox, the commanding officer of the Naval Hospital.
While Cox renewed the lease on the clinic for this year, he said he is prohibited from renewing it beyond that.
The standards for government-owned and government-leased property - strengthened after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks - include regulations about the distance from a building to its parking lot, the presence of barriers or security fences and other safety measures, Cox said. The building on Henderson Drive that houses the Family Medicine and OB/GYN satellite clinic does not conform to the rules.
And when the hospital searched the area for other available property or real estate developers who would be willing to build suitable property in the area, they came up empty handed, Cox said.
"We are still looking," he said, but added that the search does not look promising.
The hospital asked the Department of Defense for a waiver, but was turned down, he said.
About 700 of the Henderson clinic's patients are military retirees and their families, Cox said. The roughly 1,100 others are family members of active-duty service members.
All the patients will have the chance to choose whether they would like to be moved to the Naval Hospital at Camp Lejeune, the Family Medicine Clinic at New River Air Station or a civilian doctor. All of the employees at the Henderson clinic, located at 3280-C Henderson Drive, will be moved to other locations, Cox said.
"Nobody's going to be let go," he said. "The same need for health care services will exist, we will just have to (meet that need) in a different location."
Barbara and Charles Treble live just a few minutes away from the clinic and use it several times a month, Barbara Treble said. The couple is upset to hear it will close.
"We like it so much," Barbara Treble said. "It's so convenient. It's so inconvenient to go to the base, to the commissary."
For senior citizens, parking and walking into the hospital or the exchange just to pick up a prescription refill can be "a real chore," she said.
Dennis Aschbrenner also said he enjoys the convenience of the clinic, which he uses to pick up prescriptions. He had hoped they would accept some new prescriptions so he could avoid going to base entirely.
"It's a very convenient place, and it's providing a service to far more people than the general numbers would appear," he said.
Aschbrenner wrote a letter to The Daily News about the clinic closure, and said he received a lot of positive feedback, including from a disabled veteran who has difficulty with transportation.
"It's bad enough that our benefits have been cut so much," Aschbrenner said. "Once you do your time, it seems like we become the forgotten group."
The hospital is still looking into the possibility of opening a standalone off-base pharmacy to replace the pharmacy at the Henderson clinic, Cox said, but officials have not found a suitable location. Beneficiaries also have the option of using the pharmacy at the Naval Hospital, the satellite pharmacy at the Marine Corps Exchange, or ordering prescriptions by mail.
The Naval Hospital is in the midst of an expansion project, but the new construction will not be completed by the time the clinic must be closed, Cox said. While the family practice and pediatrics clinics already offer expanded hours, the hospital will explore expanding the hours at other clinics if necessary.
Beneficiaries with questions about the closure, or any other hospital-related issue, are invited to attend one of the hospital's quarterly town hall meetings, at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. today in classrooms A and B at the hospital.
Contact interactive content editor and military reporter Jennifer Hlad at jhlad@freedomenc.com or 910-219-8467.
Ellie