Jennie Stuart Medical Center is beginning to bring back employees who were laid off several weeks ago because of the financial impact of the coronavirus virus outbreak.
Approximately 20 percent of the 248 employees affected by the lay-offs were back at work early this week, Jennie Stuart Health CEO Eric Lee said Tuesday.
The lay-offs resulted from restrictions on non-emergency surgeries and elective procedures as hospitals across the state prepared to care for COVID-19 patients.
Lee said more employees will return during the spring and summer, and it will take months to return the hospital to previous levels.
“It’s going to be a somewhat lengthy process,” Lee said.
Meanwhile, the hospital also announced an easing of some procedures to allow visitors for patients.
(Jennifer P. Brown is the editor and founder of Hoptown Chronicle. Reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org.)
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
