Decatur Co. hospital continues fight to stay open with potential offer from buyer

DECATUR COUNTY, Tenn. — After months of an uncertain future for Decatur County General Hospital, employees and residents are learning the lifeline for so many might be here to stay.

The fight to keep the doors open at the rural hospital hasn’t always been easy, but for residents like Candace Hardy, it’s a lifeline.

“We would have to drive so far, and if someone has a heart attack, what would they do?” Hardy said.

After the County Commission voted in January to close the hospital for good, saying the county could no longer fund the facility, the hospital’s chief executive officer, Sandy Hayes, says talk of finding a possible buyer came to light.

“I have to believe because we cared so much, somebody saw that,” Hayes said.

Decatur County Mayor Mike Creasy said the hospital is now in the stages of being acquired.

Looking for a better option, Creasy said a few prospective buyers came to look at the hospital, and a few weeks later came an offer from Impeli Health, headquartered in Nashville.

“I think they will increase services that we haven’t seen, bringing in some new positions into the area, so there’s a lot of hope and a lot of promise,” Creasy said.

Hayes said the offer would not only save the hospital but boost the county’s economy.

“We now have promise for economic development. People will want to come here,” Hayes said.

And while nothing is final, Hayes said their hope and fight for this smalltown hospital lives on.

“Now people can really have hope and say ‘this is going to make it,'” Hayes said.

Creasy says before the county can finalize the offer from Impeli Health, the final step is to get approval from the state’s attorney general.