OLEAN, N.Y. — Call it a case of a hospital having to spend money to avoid losing more later. Olean General Hospital’s decision to cancel a construction project and convert a hospital unit for a new use will end up costing more than $1 million.
At the start of the Covid-19 crisis this spring, Olean General paused plans to create a specialty emergency psychiatric unit for older adults. The hospital later opted to cancel the $2.2 million geropsychiatric project entirely.
Hospital officials said the project wasn’t feasible in the current environment. Though there has been a need for emergency crisis stabilization and intensive treatment, the average patient for this type of program is general 80 and coming from a nursing home, the exact type of patient who is at higher risk of contracting Covid-19.
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