Surgeries suspended at Oak Forest Hospital
A spokesman for the Cook County Health and Hospitals System says surgeries have been suspended at Oak Forest Hospital.
Lucio Guerrero said Tuesday that surgeries were halted because the suburban Chicago hospital’s lone anesthesiologist retired this week.
Guerrero says there was no move to replace the anesthesiologist because county officials had hoped to close the hospital on June 1.
The Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board stunned officials last week when it denied closure of the hospital. The county had already begun winding down operations and giving notice to staff.
Guerrero says the county is reviewing its options for Oak Forest in the wake of the state board decision.
Oak Forest Hospital did about 600 surgeries a year. Those procedures will now be done at Provident Hospital in Chicago.