by David Cruz 

As North Central Bronx Hospital’s maternity ward still awaits an opening, elected officials have pressed the hospital to provide regular updates. Officials at an evening meeting on March 18th agreed.

The suggestion was put forth by Councilman Ritchie Torres, whose 15th Council District lands within the hospital, urged NCBH attending officials to consider the move during the gathering. He had already secured a commitment with NCBH officials during a health committee hearing, agreeing to monthly meetings. But while he did get assurances that NCBH would continue holding public forums, hospital brass said the gatherings may happen once a month or perhaps six weeks. Torres said the decision “reneges” on assurances he had received during the committee hearing. 

“All I’m trying to do is I would like to put together a calendar out that everyone can agree to that would be regular meetings that will focus on particular milestones for work,” the official told Torres as he stood up questioning officials from the city-owned hospital. “I hope that’s not shirking from what we said.”

“I do feel it’s a change in the decision,” Torres responded. “We didn’t say it was dependent on milestones. You didn’t say regular meetings. We were promised monthly meetings and I feel like that’s a reversal of the original understanding. And it is disappointing.”

“We can agree or disagree. But it’s not just about having a meeting for the purpose of a having meeting. It’s really about a meeting to have substantive– and work being done in between and that really is my intention.”

The ward was originally set to re-open on April 30 following a decision by senior officials to close the hospital. An exodus of medical staffers forced the closure, shifting remaining doctors to nearby Jacobi Medical Center, a trauma center part of the Health and Hospitals Corporation. But the result, according to hospital staffers at demonstrations, caused neighborhood hospitals be overburdened with more maternity calls.

NCBH responded by instituting a plan that brings in extra medical personnel to tend to expectant mothers. The Norwood hospital had delivered ten percent of Bronx babies, according to 2012 health stats.

For now, the ward remains closed, with an extended deadline that’s supposed to go into the summer.