Hackensack Meridian Health revisiting decision to close child care centers

After postponing the closing date of its child care centers until the end of the year, Hackensack Meridian Health will use the extra time to revisit its decision and consider ideas that could keep the sites open, an executive said Thursday.

Mark Sparta, president and chief executive officer at Hackensack University Medical Center, said the health care system has set up a task force in response to parents who have noted the hardship that closing the centers will create.

"We completely appreciate and feel the angst that the community and those who have served have expressed as a result of that announcement and (since) have decided to extend it, and we'll evaluate all viable options in order to keep those centers open," Sparta said.

Sparta made his comments during the annual meeting for Hackensack University Medical Center, the flagship academic hospital for Edison-based Hacksensack Meridian.

The health care system created a firestorm last week when it announced it would close its six on-site child care centers in September, saying the service wasn't sustainable in part because it was having trouble finding enough staff. It changed course this week and said it would delay the closings until the end of the year.

More:Hackensack Meridian Health to keep child care centers open until end of 2022

Hackensack University Medical Center is home to one of the centers, the Sarkis and Siran Gabrellian Child Care and Learning Center. Others are in Neptune, Red Bank, Brick, Edison and North Bergen. They are open both to the community and employees, both of whom came to appreciate the centers' long hours that supported parents who don't have typical 9-to-5 jobs.

The Hackensack hospital's meeting, held virtually because of rising COVID-19 cases, marked the first chance for parents to address its leadership.

They used their time to highlight what the center meant to them − and their children. They noted the contradictions between the hospital's mission to serve the community and its decision to take away a critical resource to their lives. And they offered money, ideas and time to help keep the facilities open.

James Clavijo and his wife are first-time parents whose 14-month-old child attends Palisades Child Care Center in North Bergen. And he said the staff has felt like an extension of his family, given him peace of mind.

He said everyone at some point in their lives benefited from child care.

"I can't understand how people...can sit there and now say this is an expendable service that we can all do without," Clavijo said. "I believe the communities you are serving through your institutions, through the care that you give, will be impacted by this."

More:Largest gift in hospital's history will fund nine-story pavilion

The parents' questions came after Sparta outlined highlights from the past year: The hospital is nearing completion of the $714 million, nine-story Helena Theurer Pavilion; it continues to deliver cutting-edge care; it has partnered with other hospitals and community groups to try to improve residents' health; it took time to celebrate nurses and other employees who were pushed to the brink during the pandemic.

He also seemed to give some insight into the decision to close the child care centers.

He said the hospital's operating profit of $87.7 million would have been razor thin if it weren't for the pandemic aid it received from the federal government.

"That is not sustainable for us to be able to make the type of investments that I just reviewed," Sparta said. "Whether it be the facility investments...or the technology investments to be able to best serve our community."

Parents didn't sound persuaded. Some employees said the child care service allowed them to deliver better care to their patients. One Hackensack University Medical Center physician said his wife, also a physician, had to take off from work for two days to try to find another child care center. Parents who weren't employees said the centers were integral to their careers as well.

"I'm just crushed, as so many are, that you made the decision to close your day care centers," Suzanne Wolsink, a parent, said. "It just seems to go against your messaging and the core values of your organization."

Michael L. Diamond is a business reporter who has been writing about the New Jersey economy and health care industry for more than 20 years. He can be reached at mdiamond@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Hackensack Meridian Health to revisit decision to close child care