 This hospital has a 97-year history of changing its focus to meet the needs of its community, and this year is no different.
Since its founding in 1910, Illinois-based Oak Forest Hospital has undergone a number of transitions. Originally opened as a poor farm, the hospital transformed into a TB sanitarium for destitute patients shortly after opening its doors when the epidemic hit the US. At some point in its history, the hospital focused entirely on chronic disease, and since the 1970s it has added rehabilitation services and ventilator services to its continuum of care.
 Sylvia Edwards, Acting Chief Operating Officer
“Our history is rich because we’ve had to reinvent ourselves based on what is happening in our community in terms of different disease entities,” said Sylvia Edwards, acting chief operating officer. “But our mission has always been and will continue to be that we will care for whomever walks through our doors.”
Increasing viability
In addition to Oak Forest, Cook County Bureau of Health Services comprises the Ambulatory and Community Health Network, Cermak Health Services, Department of Public Health, Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center, John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital, and Provident Hospital. For the past few years, under the guidance of its elected board of directors and out of financial necessity, Cook County Bureau of Health Services began evaluating ways to create efficiencies within its system.
Because Oak Forest can bill for services through its Medicaid population, and because of its position within the bureau’s structure, the board found it was better for the hospital to discontinue its long-term care and apply for a certificate of need to further develop its acute care capabilities. “In March 2007 we had 218 long-term care patients,” said Edwards. “Right now we have 13.”
Leaving behind the long-term care focus requires Oak Forest to also undergo a facilities change. Despite not being on an ambulance run, the hospital’s five-bay ED receives more than 30,000 visits annually. By moving some of the clinics currently stationed around the ED to the facility previously used for long-term care, the ED will receive a much-needed expansion, allowing the hospital to grow its acute care capabilities without a significant financial investment.
“To ensure our hospital remains viable, even without our long-term care capabilities, we needed to make some changes to our ED,” Edwards said. “We’re also looking at being added to an ambulance run in 2009, which will increase our viability in the community.”
In the meantime, Edwards and her administration have increased their community outreach by providing hearing screenings at the hospital and in the community, participating in senior health fairs with blood sugar screenings, and working with local politicians and clergy to get the word out that Oak Forest has more than long-term care. “The flagship hospital of the bureau is Stroger Hospital, so we’ve been quietly providing other services for many years. We’re now focused on letting our community know what other services we can provide.”
Oak Forest is a referral hospital for many Stroger Hospital patients, especially those requiring rehabilitation and ventilator care. Consequently, the hospital’s employees are equipped to handle patients with numerous injuries and, under the guidance of Dr. Theresa McCarthy, Oak Forest’s rehabilitation program has flourished.
“Our ventilator unit has played a significant role in weaning patients off their dependencies and moving them onto a higher quality of life,” Edwards said. “Our staff feels a commitment to see our facility succeed, which is why I believe the changes we’re making now will be successful.”
Filling the void
Ninety-seven years after openings its doors, Oak Forest continues to focus on meeting the needs of its community, even if those needs require a little bit of re-engineering. Only 25 miles from Chicago, Edwards and her team are beginning to feel the results of the gentrification of the Windy City. With less affordable housing in the city, the hospital’s southern suburban area is seeing an influx of working poor and uninsured patients.
“People may have been living out here but now find themselves unemployed,” said Edwards. “They need health services, and as the only public hospital in this area, we fill that void.” But Edwards views the hospital’s position as a positive. “We have an advantage in being able to meet those needs, and as we move into our next year of existence, our mission will be the same as it’s always been: we’re here for whatever the community needs.”
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