Rendering of plans for updating exterior of Brunswick Hospital Center.

by Carolyn James

Thanks to a $400,000 grant from New York State Senator Chuck Fuschillo, Brunswick Hospital Center is getting a facelift. The front exterior of the building and the side entrance to the hospital’s heavily used emergency room will undergo renovations scheduled to begin shortly.

"We are very grateful to the Senator for his assistance in getting this done," said the hospital’s administrator, Dr. Amar Singh. "We already have contractors for it and look forward to seeing the work when it is completed."

Fuschillo said he was pleased to have been able to procure the funding for the hospital, which he said is an important health care provider and employer within the community. "Whatever we can do to help that hospital succeed we will do," he said.

Meanwhile, rumors about the hospital’s demise are greatly exaggerated, said Singh, who, with his partners, continues to work through a long and bitter legal dispute with the hospital’s owners.

"We have just scored a 99 (in state certification) in our lab and our quality of care is improving every day," said Singh.

In addition, the 2002 and 2003 audit has shown a marginal profit, a turnaround from the financial crisis that haunted the hospital for years. And, it is applying to expand, adding an additional 18-20 beds, said Singh.

"We have seen a greater need with the closing of Island Medical Center in Hempstead," he said. "And we are attempting to respond to that."

Last week, Stewart J. McLaughlin, the court ordered receiver who is overseeing operations at the hospital until the legal dispute is resolved, was off to Washington D.C., to attend a meeting of health-care providers with Tommy Thompson, the U.S. Secretary of Human Services.

"He was invited as a representative from Brunswick Hospital and from his area, which is an honor," said Singh.

But that doesn’t mean the hospital is without its problems. Employees recently voted to unionize and the two sides are in heavy negotiations to come up with a contact. The employees recently held a demonstration, pressing for a resolution to the matter and some are wearing buttons saying they want a decent wage.

In response, Singh said he is trying to negotiate "in good faith," but that the hospital’s tenuous financial situation makes it very difficult.

"We are more than willing to negotiate a contract but I have to know where the money is coming from," said Singh. "That, along with the pending lawsuit, is what has to be resolved before we can go any further."

Susan D’Amico, a spokesperson for the employees, did not return phone calls soliciting her comments.