One Brooklyn Health Chief Executive Officer Dr. Sandra Scott led a delegation of hospital executives at a community town hall Monday, Sept. 28, outlining modernization plans and addressing concerns about emergency room delays, infrastructure failures and patient care, according to CanarsieCourier.
Hosted by the One Brooklyn Health Community Advisory Board at the Hebrew Educational Society, 9502 Seaview Ave., the two-hour meeting brought hospital leadership face-to-face with residents seeking answers about service challenges at Brookdale Hospital Medical Center and surrounding facilities. Scott was joined by President and Chief Transformation Officer Art Gianelli and Chief Patient Experience Officer Nicole Francois.
Plans for the Kingsbrook campus include approximately 700 affordable housing units, a medical village and expanded outpatient and behavioral health services. At Brookdale Hospital, upgrades include renovated trauma and critical care units, modernized diagnostic imaging systems and additional emergency treatment space. OBH also reported hiring 30 emergency medicine physicians over the past two years.
Residents raised concerns about overcrowded emergency departments, inadequate front-desk assistance and communication failures involving staff and expectant mothers. One account described a patient waiting six days in the emergency room for an inpatient bed, underscoring concerns about delays in accessing hospital care.
Scott and her colleagues acknowledged the challenges and outlined plans for a specialized clinical decision unit intended to improve triage, accelerate treatment and reduce unnecessary admissions. Nursing and security leadership also apologized for communication lapses and committed to internal reviews and staff retraining.
OBH is also seeking funding for a new energy-generation plant to address Brookdale’s aging electrical infrastructure. Once financing is finalized, the project is expected to take two years. The network also aims for 35% participation by minority- and women-owned businesses in state-funded construction and transformation projects.
The town hall concluded with commitments to hold regular follow-up meetings, giving residents opportunities to track progress and assess whether the planned investments improve patient outcomes, service delivery and access to care across Brooklyn.
