Google Maps image of Fanny Allen in Colchester.
Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont Medical Center will keep the operating rooms at its Fanny Allen campus in Colchester closed through the month of January while staff and outside experts continue to investigate the cause of two air quality incidents, in October and November. Planned surgeries will continue to be rescheduled.
So far, extensive testing conducted both internally and by external air quality consultants and the State of Vermont has not revealed a cause. As a result, hospital leadership made the decision to keep the operating rooms closed for the month of January while the investigation continues. Thorough testing throughout the rest of the building at Fanny Allen has shown that the air quality is safe, and all other services at the site – including rehab and urgent care – remain open.
“We feel it’s critical that we do everything reasonably possible to determine what caused these two incidents so that we can work toward a solution,” said Steve Leffler, MD, interim president of the UVM Medical Center.
As the closure continues, leaders will explore how to best continue to serve patients with the least disruption possible. Solutions currently being considered include working with our network affiliate hospitals to schedule some surgeries in their operating rooms, and looking at available capacity with our community partners.
“Our staff have stepped up in an amazingly dedicated and flexible way to help us respond to this situation,” Dr. Leffler added. “We will continue to work to get these procedures done for our patients in a timely fashion and in a safe space.”
About the University of Vermont Medical Center
The University of Vermont Medical Center is a 447-bed tertiary care regional referral center providing advanced care to approximately 1 million residents in Vermont and northern New York. Together with our partners at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, we are Vermont’s academic medical center. The University of Vermont Medical Center also serves as a community hospital for approximately 150,000 residents in Chittenden and Grand Isle counties.
The University of Vermont Medical Center is a member of The University of Vermont Health Network, an integrated system established to deliver high quality academic medicine to every community we serve.
For more information visit www.UVMHealth.org/MedCenter
- The University of Vermont Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network Medical Group
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Alice Hyde Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Central Vermont Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Elizabethtown Community Hospital
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Porter Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Home Health & Hospice
Source: Burlington, VT – 12.17.2019. The University of Vermont Medical Center. The University of Vermont Medical Center UVMHealth.org/MedCenter