Children's National Hospital wants to move

[Anonymous]

public transportation is important but so is parking. How many people take the metro with a sick child? Not many.

[Anonymous]

Going to Washington Hospital Center is such a bummer our gastro has opened his own surgicenter for procedures because patients won't go there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Link? Why do they want to move? What is wrong with their current location?

Selfishly I would prefer they stay where they are because we live on the east side and it's reassuring to me to know they are not too hard to get to. When we have had to go to the emergency room for an adult, it sucks from where we live, and that would be so much worse with a kid in a medical emergency.

But just for access to specialists, I'm more neutral. The current location is convenient, but I've gone much further for specialists appointments so that's not as big of a deal. The main issue is the ER and being in a central location accessible from many parts of town.

For people who don't use it as a general hospital, its painful to get to, especially since so many of Children's patients have to see specialists several times a month or year AT least. Its so stressful just getting there.

It is literally in the dead center of the entire Metropolitan area. What are you talking about? There could be no more fair a location for all potential patients.

Have you ever driven there from Falls Church?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Folks, it's stressful to get to the current location from certain parts of town.

Wherever they move will have the same problem.

People who live close to the current location do not find it hard to get there. If you live in Petworth, Brookland, Capitol Hill, etc., the current location is pretty great. If you live across the river or Georgetown, it's a pain. But moving it to another neighborhood doesn't solve this problem, it just shifts who it is convenient for and who it's not convenient for.

Also the people complaining about the difficulty of reaching the current location and the parking garage in the same breath are working at cross purposes. A more central location would make it more accessible by public transit, but would likely make parking even worse than it currently is. You also have to think about emergency vehicle traffic -- the current location can be a pain to drive to but there are advantages of being near the junction of two major thoroughfares with multiple lanes, because it makes it easier for ambulances to get to there.

One of the major features of Children's is that it is the only Trauma 1 level children's ER in the entire region. So ER accessibility is really important, more so than access to specialists, sadly for those of us whose kids need to see specialists there frequently!

Hospital location can be really difficult. I am not sure I can think of a site elsewhere in the city that is obviously superior to their current site, even though I totally understand what is not ideal about the current site.

Is INOVA Childrens in Fairfax not Level 1 Trauma? (I'm unsure).

Inova Fairfax Hospital is a Level 1 Trauma center and handles all ages.

Childrens is the only local Level 1 Trauma that only serves pediatric patients.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Link? Why do they want to move? What is wrong with their current location?

Selfishly I would prefer they stay where they are because we live on the east side and it's reassuring to me to know they are not too hard to get to. When we have had to go to the emergency room for an adult, it sucks from where we live, and that would be so much worse with a kid in a medical emergency.

But just for access to specialists, I'm more neutral. The current location is convenient, but I've gone much further for specialists appointments so that's not as big of a deal. The main issue is the ER and being in a central location accessible from many parts of town.

For people who don't use it as a general hospital, its painful to get to, especially since so many of Children's patients have to see specialists several times a month or year AT least. Its so stressful just getting there.

It is literally in the dead center of the entire Metropolitan area. What are you talking about? There could be no more fair a location for all potential patients.

Have you ever driven there from Falls Church?

If convenience to DC places is a priority, then Falls Church is the wrong choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Link? Why do they want to move? What is wrong with their current location?

Selfishly I would prefer they stay where they are because we live on the east side and it's reassuring to me to know they are not too hard to get to. When we have had to go to the emergency room for an adult, it sucks from where we live, and that would be so much worse with a kid in a medical emergency.

But just for access to specialists, I'm more neutral. The current location is convenient, but I've gone much further for specialists appointments so that's not as big of a deal. The main issue is the ER and being in a central location accessible from many parts of town.

For people who don't use it as a general hospital, its painful to get to, especially since so many of Children's patients have to see specialists several times a month or year AT least. Its so stressful just getting there.

It is literally in the dead center of the entire Metropolitan area. What are you talking about? There could be no more fair a location for all potential patients.

It takes us 45 minutes everytime. We are equal distant to Children's INOVA, but it takes us just 15 to get there. It might be "dead center" but the roads are slow and filled with traffic.

Then why dont you just go to INOVA? Why would Children's National move closer to you when you are already well served by INOVA, a 15 minute drive away?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Link? Why do they want to move? What is wrong with their current location?

Selfishly I would prefer they stay where they are because we live on the east side and it's reassuring to me to know they are not too hard to get to. When we have had to go to the emergency room for an adult, it sucks from where we live, and that would be so much worse with a kid in a medical emergency.

But just for access to specialists, I'm more neutral. The current location is convenient, but I've gone much further for specialists appointments so that's not as big of a deal. The main issue is the ER and being in a central location accessible from many parts of town.

For people who don't use it as a general hospital, its painful to get to, especially since so many of Children's patients have to see specialists several times a month or year AT least. Its so stressful just getting there.

It is literally in the dead center of the entire Metropolitan area. What are you talking about? There could be no more fair a location for all potential patients.

Have you ever driven there from Falls Church?

If convenience to DC places is a priority, then Falls Church is the wrong choice.

I live in Arlington and told my doc I would rather switch than go to Medstar on Irving St

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Link? Why do they want to move? What is wrong with their current location?

Selfishly I would prefer they stay where they are because we live on the east side and it's reassuring to me to know they are not too hard to get to. When we have had to go to the emergency room for an adult, it sucks from where we live, and that would be so much worse with a kid in a medical emergency.

But just for access to specialists, I'm more neutral. The current location is convenient, but I've gone much further for specialists appointments so that's not as big of a deal. The main issue is the ER and being in a central location accessible from many parts of town.

For people who don't use it as a general hospital, its painful to get to, especially since so many of Children's patients have to see specialists several times a month or year AT least. Its so stressful just getting there.

It is literally in the dead center of the entire Metropolitan area. What are you talking about? There could be no more fair a location for all potential patients.

Have you ever driven there from Falls Church?

That isn’t the point. If it relocates to, say, “Falls Church,” then the patient coming from Largo MD now has doubled their travel time. Same for every other starting point in MD and most places in the District.

Having the hospital in the center of the DMV vs shifted to favor one side makes sense. Because its patient population is by design drawn from the entire DMV.

[Anonymous]

It will need a helipad for medivac, so that will limit in DC where it can be located as there are flight restrictions. It also needs the availability of ambulances with shock trauma ped cases to get there quickly, so it needs to be located close to a highway.

As a child my parents drove from 3 hours away to take me here (before it used to be located on 14th street) several times a year for 10+ years. There are specialists there that deal with very rare and serious conditions that you cannot find anywhere else or not within a reasonable distance. Now there is KKI in Baltimore, but it is much smaller. Otherwise you have to go to Wilmington, DE or the Hospital for Special Surgery in NY.

The parking lot is crazy but it was built so long ago when cars were smaller. It's worth it though to see the drs there.

[Anonymous]

I really think it would be better if Children's were in upper northwest somewhere. That would make it a lot easier to get to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really think it would be better if Children's were in upper northwest somewhere. That would make it a lot easier to get to.

Intelsat site?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really think it would be better if Children's were in upper northwest somewhere. That would make it a lot easier to get to.

Intelsat site?

Not a bad idea

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should move out to Largo Town Center to be more accessible.

Largo isn't accessible

Largo Town Center is right ON a metro stop. It’s even MORE accessible than the current location, dummy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should move out to Largo Town Center to be more accessible.

Largo isn't accessible

Largo Town Center is right ON a metro stop. It’s even MORE accessible than the current location, dummy.

Right. And don’t forget that employees need to get there too and need to live in a lower COL area than DC.

[Anonymous]

No, they should be required to stay at the location in NE. DC is full and the satellite location in Ward 4, at the Walter Reed location.