North Shore-LIJ chosen for Massapequa Park center

Massapequa Park officials have chosen to partner with the North Shore-LIJ Health System in bringing an emergency care facility to the Massapequas, which Mayor James Altadonna Jr. said has been underserved since an Amityville hospital closed in 2005.

North Shore-LIJ would design and finance the construction of what Altadonna Thursday said is to be a stand-alone emergency center that can accept patients arriving via ambulance but is smaller than a traditional hospital.

“Not only will it bring emergency care to Massapequa Park and the surrounding area, it will be an economic engine that attracts more people here and bolsters the business district,” Altadonna said.

The village and hospital group have yet to decide on the exact location, size and scope of the project. No formal contract has been signed.

North Shore-LIJ must also seek a certificate of need from Albany before opening and operating a health facility, hospital group spokesman Terry Lynam said.

“There is a willingness to move forward and make this happen, but we’re at a very preliminary stage,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is identify a range of options that might be beneficial to the community.”

Altadonna said village leaders chose North Shore-LIJ this week after about six months of vetting hospital groups.

Catholic Health Services of Long Island was the other finalist in the search.

“It has nothing to do with quality of care,” Altadonna said. “We feel that Catholic Health Services would serve the area equally well.”

The mayor said North Shore-LIJ has an advantage because it has experience in stand-alone emergency facilities.

The group is behind a $100 million comprehensive care center proposed for the Greenwich Village site of the former St. Vincent’s Hospital Manhattan.

The Massapequa Park facility would be similar in the services offered but “with a smaller footprint,” Altadonna said. “We are hoping to develop a pilot here that will be a model for the state and further.”

Above: Massapequa Park Mayor James Altadonna Jr. stands near the former site of the now-shuttered Brunswick Medical Center. (Dec. 23, 2011)