News & Events
Nurses Again Urge Dr. Benishek to Share Information About Cheboygan Memorial Hospital
05.03.2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Dawn Kettinger, 517-349-5640, dawn.kettinger@minurses.org
Congressman asked to help community by providing details of his involvement
Advocating for their patients throughout Cheboygan County, the Michigan Nurses Association today again asked Congressman Dr. Dan Benishek of Crystal Falls to provide details about how he and his staff “spent the last three months working with government regulatory agencies, and local and state officials”(1) to keep Cheboygan Memorial Hospital open.
Nurses who worked at CMH are thrilled about the planned re-opening on May 14th of the hospital’s emergency department and other services so they can deliver care to the community again. It’s also important right now, Michigan Nurses Association Executive Director John Karebian said, to explore how the closing might have been avoided and to ensure that Cheboygan County does not lose its only hospital again.
“As a medical doctor, Congressman Benishek has unique qualifications regarding health care issues and should have an unquestionable dedication to protecting it for his constituents,” Karebian said. “Yet neither Dr. Benishek nor his representatives were at any of the multiple court hearings that MNA participated in over the past few months to fight to save the hospital.
“However, it is possible that Dr. Benishek had behind-the-scenes involvement that no one is aware of. We would ask him now to help the community by holding a town hall meeting in Cheboygan to review the actions he took, discuss which agencies and officials he worked with over the past three months, and answer lingering questions that residents may have.
“We would also ask him to spell out his plan for helping to ensure that Cheboygan Memorial Hospital can continue to provide medical care for the community for years to come.”
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The Michigan Nurses Association represents more than 10,000 registered nurses statewide, advocating for them and their patients.
