MetroHealth to shut down 144 beds at old Deaconess Hospital

MetroHealth System plans to close a 144-bed skilled nursing facility in the former Deaconess Hospital in Old Brooklyn within 90 days, according to a state filing. The news comes four days after MetroHealth Chief Executive Mark Moran confirmed that the health system, which includes a hospital and outpatient clinics as well as the senior center, would cut 450 jobs over the next two months. More than 100 of the reductions will come with the closing. "This change maintains our responsibility to the overall financial health of the system," Moran said in a statement. "We will continue to review and refine our service delivery to ensure excellent quality and maximum efficiency." Patients -- many of whom are long-term care residents -- will be placed in community-based facilities suited to meet their needs, said a MetroHealth release.