Union Memorial Hospital is waiting on a city planning commission hearing to begin the construction of a helipad on the rooftop of the Johnston Professional Building located on Calvert Street. The $2.5 million project has met with opposition from the Charles Village Civic Association as well as representatives of other communities who are wary of the increased noise level and safety implications of an onsite helicopter landing pad.
Debra Schindler, Senior Public Relations Specialist at the hospital, said they are planning to have a helicopter flyover on February 3rd at 4 p.m. to satisfy resident complaints over the noise level.
Hospital officials believe that construction of a helipad is necessary in order to provide optimal patient care as well as remain competitive with other hospitals in the Baltimore metropolitan area. The hospital is not seeking designation as a general trauma center, which would lead to a substantially higher number of flights, so the primary beneficiaries of the introduction of a helipad will be the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Heart Institute and the Raymond Curtis National Hand Center.
Charles Village residents feel they have not been adequately informed about the new helipad and remain opposed to the impending plans. Community members are opposed to the heliport because of the dangers associated with landing and take-off of the helicopter, especially because the buildings around the Johnston Professional Building are taller than the proposed location for the helipad. Residents who attended a meeting on Jan. 8 at the University Baptist Church in Charles Village were also displeased that hospital officials had discarded a potential flight plan because of feedback from Johns Hopkins University.
However, Dennis O'Shea, Executive Director of Communications and Public Affairs at Hopkins, has stated that "The university takes no stance on the issue and the university did not object to consideration of a Charles Street route."
Schindler confirmed O'Shea's statement.
Residents of Charles Village and even some University personnel are also curious as to why Union Memorial is not considering alternatives to building the helipad on Calvert Street.
"Union Memorial should build the helipad at the Eastern High School campus. This would eliminate any potential dangers to Charles Village, and would also serve to decrease patient transit time," suggested Professor Moudrianakis, a member of the Biology department at Hopkins.
University students living in the area have also shown some concern over safety.
"It would be smarter to build the helipad at ground level a short distance away from the congested area surrounding Union Memorial," recommended Matt Naftilan, a junior at Hopkins who lives on 33rd Street.
Schindler is not aware of any alternative plans that the hospital might pursue.
In November, Solucient, a nationally accredited independent research group, recognized the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Heart Institute as one of the nation's top 100 hospitals for cardiovascular care. The heart institute at Union Memorial was the only Maryland hospital to receive this distinction. Dr. John C. Wang, chief of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory at the Institute, has stated that having the ability to transport patients by helicopter directly to the hospital "can mean the difference, literally, between life and death." Staff at the Institute estimate that they will receive one to five cardiac cases per week by helicopter transport.
The Curtis National Hand Center features the largest hand rehabilitation center in the nation, and staff at the center regularly treat patients from across the Mid-Atlantic region.
Hospital staff believe that having a helipad will allow the center, which Congress designated the National Center for the Treatment of the Hand and Upper Extremity, to better treat patients coming from as far away as West Virginia Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Hospital officials estimate that the helipad will be used to receive three cases of hand trauma per month.
In addition to patient care, the hospital believes that a helipad is crucial in terms of recruiting and retaining quality physicians and staff. Union Memorial Hospital is one of five hospitals in the region that performs cardiac surgery. The others, University of Maryland Medical Center, Johns Hopkins Hospital, St. Joseph Medical Center and Sinai Hospital, all currently maintain and operate nearby helicopter landing sites.
Officials at Union Memorial have stated that a helipad will allow the hospital to become a destination hospital for cardiac and hand trauma cases from a broader region, thus allowing Union Memorial to remain competitive in terms of finances as well as personnel.
