Caption by Ashmar Mandou

Amid the closure of West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park, State Representative La Shawn Ford and Resilience Healthcare CEO Manoj Prasad held a press conference last Wednesday to discuss the temporary closure and the possibility to reopen this summer. “The closure of this hospital is a reversal of access to healthcare for this area,” said Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago). The closure, according to staff at West Suburban Medical Center was due to a computerized billing system, therefore feeling doubtful of the center’s reopening this summer. The press conference aimed to provide clarity and insights into the challenges and to discuss a collaborative effort to resume the hospital’s services to the community. “I always want to make sure that I have at least four or five payrolls saved somewhere, because I don’t want us to work and have our employees have a payless payday,” said Dr. Manoj Prasad, CEO of Resilience Healthcare, the company that owns the hospital. Prasad said he hopes to reopen the hospital by July, but state leaders said they will be watching closely to make sure the hospital is financially stable before it opens again.