The Peru hospital is closed: Here’s what you need to know

St. Margaret’s hospital in Peru closed Jan. 28.

The closure will include all acute hospital services in Peru, emergency room, ICU, Med-Surg/Peds, obstetrics, all surgeries, lab, X-ray and other outpatient hospital services.

Where are the closest emergency rooms?

St. Margaret’s Health-Spring Valley, 600 E. First St., Spring Valley, 4 miles west on U.S. 6

OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center, 1100 E. Norris Drive, Ottawa, 17 miles east on U.S. 6

OSF St. Paul Medical Center, 1401 E. 12th St., Mendota, 20 miles north

OSF St. Clare Medical Center, 530 Park Ave. E., Princeton, 22 miles west

OSF Center for Health, 111 Spring St., Streator, 29 miles southeast

If I need an ambulance, where will it take me?

Ambulance providers generally allow patients to choose what hospital they wish to be transferred. In the event of an emergency, EMS providers will take patients to closest emergency room, which may in some cases now be outside of St. Margaret’s network. If you need an ambulance, dial 911.

Where can expecting mothers go for maternity care?

OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center, Ottawa, call 815-431-5438 for information; Morris Hospital, 150 W. High St., Morris, also offices in Ottawa, call 815-705-7301 for information; OSF St. James-John W. Albrecht Medical Center, 2500 W. Reynolds St., Pontiac, call 815-842-4972 for information; KSB Hospital, 403 E. First St., Dixon, call 815-288-MOMS for information; CGH Medical Center, 100 E. Le Fevre Road, Sterling, call 815-625-0400, ext. 5504, for information; Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital, 1 Kish Hospital Drive, DeKalb, call 815-766-7467 for information.

My primary care provider is a St. Margaret’s affiliate. Does the hospital closure mean I need to find a new family doctor?

No, you will still be able to see your primary care provider.

What about the specialists at the 920 West St. complex? Will those offices be closed and do I need a new specialist?

The specialty offices in Peru remain open. There should be no need to find a new specialist.

I’m waiting for results of the tests run at St. Margaret’s Peru. What happens if the results aren’t back by Saturday?

You still will get your results if they have been done at Peru. The results are sent to the ordering physician.

What will happen to the medical records from my visits to St. Margaret’s-Peru?

You will still have access to your medical records.

Will physical therapy services continue at the Illinois Valley YMCA?

Yes.

Will the hospital reopen?

The closure is a temporary suspension, but there has been no announcement of a reopening. Hospital officials are seeking a Rural Emergency Hospital designation, which would allow the facility to have an emergency room and some outpatient services, but likely no obstetrics unit. Hospital officials said they will have to reopen the hospital first, before it can acquire Rural Emergency Hospital designation.

Why is the Rural Emergency Hospital designation significant?

The designation was established Jan. 1 by the federal government to address the growing concern over closures of rural hospitals nationally. The designation opens up more funding to the hospital and allows it to operate an emergency room and outpatient services.