McKenzie citizens affected by hospital closure

McKENZIE, Tenn. — Leaders with McKenzie Regional Hospital announced Friday that they will close most patient services and the emergency department by Sept. 15.

Up to 200 positions will be eliminated in the closure.

“I just hate to see people lose their job,” McKenzie resident Bobbie Cooper said. “We do have a hospital here. If we have to get there pretty quick, we’re right here at it, so I just hate to see it close.”

Employees at the Spivey Eye Clinic refer their patients to the hospital. Those patients will also be affected.

“We now won’t be able to have a surgeon come up here every week to do cataract surgery, so we’ll have to send them to Paris or Jackson, which is 20 minutes and 45 minutes away,” Spivey Eye Clinic employee Claire Craddock said.

Many McKenzie residents are inconvenienced by the closure of the hospital and are contemplating where they’ll go next.

“You know my mom’s used it over the years, and it’s just going to be a huge impact, a huge loss, a big void in the city of McKenzie,” McKenzie resident Tracy Teague said.

Employees at McKenzie Regional will continue to receive pay and benefits through Sep. 29.

Residents say the closure is a loss for the whole community.

“I feel like it’s kind of sad,” McKenzie resident Morgan Jarett said. “That’s a lot of jobs lost in a community that really needs jobs, and it just kind of puts everybody in a bad situation if there’s not anywhere to go in case of an emergency, and I just think it’s a good asset to our community.”

Baptist Memorial Health Care will be buying the hospital’s assets.

If you’re a patient at McKenzie Regional, you can get your medical records by emailing MRH_MedicalRecords@QuorumHealth.com or calling 615-221-3786.