TCMC To End Most Medical Services

Tennessee Christian Medical Center is shutting down most of its medical and surgical operations by the end of the month.

HCA’s Tristar Health System purchased the Madison facility from Adventist Healthcare earlier this year.

Yesterday the state health care facilities licensing board gave the company approval to shut down Tennessee Christian’s medical emergency services on June 1^st. CEO Ernie Bacon says it’s one of the hospital’s last steps towards specializing in behavioral health and rehabilitation services.

“The Adventist system did operate a full-service medical/surgical program as well as those other two programs. They were unsuccessful in building the volume necessary to sustain the medical-surgical programs, and subsequently we have consolidated those within the Tristar system.”

Bacon says the Tennessee Christian’s heart catheterization lab, sleep lab and outpatient diagnostic services have already moved to Tristar’s Skyline Medical Center, which is only five miles away, and medical inpatient admissions will stop at the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Tristar is actively recruiting the hospital’s medical staff to stay within the system after their jobs at Tennessee Christian end. Bacon says there are enough vacancies at the company’s other area hospitals to accommodate the displaced employees.