Linda Rosen

The state’s Emergency Medical Services chief has faced additional strains since the closure of two Oahu hospitals, but things apparently are looking up

By Vicki Viotti

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Feb 10, 2012

~~<p>Dr. Linda Rosen has always juggled multiple functions as chief of the state’s Emergency Medical Services and Injury Prevention System Branch in the Department of Health. But in the last few months she’s added the role of traffic director to those functions, keeping an eye on how well Hawaii’s hospital network is managing its emergency-room workload.</p>
<p>What’s changed, of course, is the closure of the two Hawaii Medical Center hospitals, a subject that came up again this week in a state Senate informational briefing. There is hope of resolution — with the eventual reopening of HMC-West by a new owner, to serve the Ewa communities, and proposals to repurpose HMC-East in Liliha to address the state’s persistent deficit in long-term care facilities.</p>
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Dr. Linda Rosen has always juggled multiple functions as chief of the state’s Emergency Medical Services and Injury Prevention System Branch in the Department of Health. But in the last few months she’s added the role of traffic director to those functions, keeping an eye on how well Hawaii’s hospital network is managing its emergency-room workload.

What’s changed, of course, is the closure of the two Hawaii Medical Center hospitals, a subject that came up again this week in a state Senate informational briefing. There is hope of resolution — with the eventual reopening of HMC-West by a new owner, to serve the Ewa communities, and proposals to repurpose HMC-East in Liliha to address the state’s persistent deficit in long-term care facilities. Login for more...