Credit crisis claims small hospital in Bucks

The national credit crisis has claimed a small Bucks County hospital devoted to breast-cancer care.

Leif Murphy, chief executive officer of Diversified Specialty Institutes, the for-profit, Nashville, Tenn., company that operates the Bensalem hospital, said DSI was "seeking additional capital" to keep the hospital open, but there was only a "remote chance" it would succeed.

In a letter to the state Department of Labor and Industry, DSI said it planned to close the Comprehensive Breast Care Institute at DSI of Bucks County, which has 89 employees, on Feb. 4. A separate letter to the Pennsylvania Department of Health said it would close Feb. 6.

The 120,000-square-foot, 24-bed center entered the region's highly competitive cancer-treatment market in April 2007 with a holistic approach combining high-tech equipment with spiritual support. DSI, which primarily operates kidney dialysis centers, expected to do 7,500 imaging scans and up to 4,000 surgical procedures its first year.

Murphy said patient volume was not high enough to cover operating expenses. "Current economic conditions combined with difficulty in the capital markets have made it impossible for us to continue to fund the losses," he said. High levels of defaults on home mortgages have made all loans more difficult to obtain in the last year.

He remains convinced that the hospital's approach was viable. "The patient care model has been very successful," he said.

DSI's doctors have privileges at other hospitals, where they will continue to treat patients, Murphy said. Several medical practices - Bucks County Plastic Surgery Associates, Bucks County Hematology-Oncology Group and Comprehensive Breast Care Associates - will continue working from offices adjacent to the hospital.