Pinnacle Regional Hospital sets new hours for patients’ medical record pickup
BOONVILLE, Mo. (KMIZ)
Pinnacle Regional Hospital is no longer staffing its emergency room and has new hours for patients to retrieve their medical records.
Pinnacle posted Tuesday on its Facebook page that patients can pick up their records Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon starting Thursday.
A Pinnacle employee said they’ve received more than 300 medical records requests daily and they are trying to keep up with the demand, but it’s difficult because retrieving the records is a manual process.
Patients were notified about picking up their records after the hospital closed citing "economic hardship" on Jan. 15. They were told this process could take up to two weeks.
"We came in and filled out our application and it was about a week and a half and they called us back this morning and now we’re done," Pinnacle Regional Hospital patient Larry Weathers said.
A Boonville resident who didn’t want to be identified said her husband had major surgery last week and was concerned about leaving him alone while she went to request their records.
"Well, we just kind of wonder how long it’s going to be," said the woman, who asked not to be identified to protect her privacy. "Hopefully they can get them soon so we’ll know what to do."
Pinnacle employees said patients' cars were lined up along the parking lot the first two weeks the hospital released records, but the demand calmed down in the last few days.
Former Pinnacle patients say they are shocked by the abrupt closing and some still don’t know where they will receive medical treatment.
"Now we don’t even have a doctor," said the woman who wanted to remain anonymous. "He’s gone to Springfield, so I don’t know what we’re going to do."
Pinnacle Regional Hospital is working to find a long-term partner who can hold its records for the next 10 years. Once that arrangement is finalized Pinnacle will post details on its social media outlets.
