Hospital Closes Emergency Room in Strike Threat

Facing the possibility of a strike by county nurses next week, Valley Medical Center has indefinitely closed its emergency room.

Emergency patients who showed up at the county-operated hospital, which normally handles about half of all emergency cases in the county, were being sent to other hospitals around Fresno.

The hospital said it took the action as a way to reduce admissions, a necessity if about 400 county nurses go on strike next week. The nurses are seeking higher pay and are protesting what they said is the county’s failure to adequately replace skilled nursing positions as those openings occur.

The hospital’s burn unit and the obstetrics and surgical departments continued in operation. If a strike occurs, however, some of those patients may be transferred to other hospitals, officials said.