Sharon Pediatrics: Future is unclear


 

One of the only pediatric centers in the area will soon be shorthanded and it’s not clear when and if things will ever get back to normal.

Sharon Pediatric Associates, which until a couple of years ago operated with four full-time pediatricians, will shortly be down to one, after the retirement of Dr. Catherine Leidigh in August and the imminent departure of Dr. Virginia Gray-Clarke. The lone remaining pediatrician, Tomas Tomanek, has said he will not have the time to see all of Gray-Clarke’s patients.

Meanwhile Gray-Clarke has told her patients that her last day with Tomanek will be Friday, Dec. 21, but that she will be opening up her own practice locally. An advertisement in the Sept. 27 Lakeville Journal announced that Gray-Clarke "intends to remain practicing pediatrics in the area," that her "plans will be publicized at a future date" and that Sharon Pediatrics "will continue practicing at full capacity."

Neither Gray-Clarke nor Tomanek returned messages seeking clarification. After a second call early this week, Tomanek said through his office manager that he declined to comment.

But in a Nov. 13 letter to parents of Sharon Pediatrics’ patients, Tomanek said, "As of this time, we have been unable to find a permanent replacement for Dr. Leidigh after her retirement, so after the departure of Dr. Gray-Clarke I will be by myself until another qualified physician can be hired."

He added that Gray-Clarke had "not shared her future plans with us" and that patients must either make arrangements to continue to see her after Dec. 21 or "have their care changed to another pediatric practice."

"I apologize for the short notice but we were hoping to know more information by this time," Tomanek wrote.


Birth of Sharon Pediatrics


There were no pediatricians at all in the Northwest Corner until 1946, when Dr. George Haydock opened the now-defunct Sharon Clinic, which he operated alone until 1962, when he was joined by Dr. John W. "Bill" Gallup. They were joined in 1973 by Dr. Malcolm Brown.

In 1985, Haydock retired and dissolved the clinic, leaving Gallup, Brown and Christopher Veale to found Sharon Pediatrics. Brown, who recalled this bit of history in an interview, retired in 2005 and was elected first selectman of the town of Sharon.

Brown said there are many obstacles to recruiting qualified pediatricians in the modern era, especially in the Northwest Corner. He recalled that when he was at Columbia University medical school in the 1960s, tuition ranged between $1,000 and $2,000 per year. Nowadays tuition at a private medical school can be between $30,000 and $40,000, leaving most medical graduates with at least $100,000 of debt. High debt loads often steer graduates toward profitable high-end specialties rather than pediatrics.

In addition, pediatricians often work longer hours, while pediatric offices have higher overhead and lower profits than general practitioners. Sharon Pediatrics, for example, must be fully staffed from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, with half a day on Saturdays. Its doctors are on-call one out of every three or four nights, compared to approximately one out of eight in many other practices. And while on-call, they are often prevailed upon to respond more often than other physicians because emergency room doctors lack experience in dealing with infants and toddlers, for example.

"Emergency rooms are not well equipped to handle children," Brown explained. "As a pediatrician, you really have to be young to pull those nights and come into the office the next day."

Add the high cost of housing in the Northwest Corner and you have a challenging recruitment situation.


Reasons for schism unclear


Brown said he had great respect for the "tremendous abilities" of both Tomanek and Gray-Clarke and he hoped they both find a way to continue to practice in the area.

"They agree on medical issues," he added. "They’ve had a hard time agreeing on how to run the practice."

Reached at her home, Leidigh declined to comment. "I left and have purposely stayed out of the loop," she said.

Charlie Therrien, Sharon Hospital’s chief executive, said in an interview that Sharon Pediatrics is an independent group with no formal financial or legal connection to the hospital, which is across the street from the practice’s Sharon office (there is also a North Canaan office). He added that it is not uncommon for pediatric groups to "have an evolution," but declined to directly address the situation at Sharon Pediatrics.

"Having a strong pediatrics practice is important to everyone, including us," Therrien explained. "The goal is always to have a strong pediatrics presence that supports the hospital."

Several parents contacted by The Lakeville Journal either did not return phone messages or declined to comment on the record. Most expressed some level of concern about whether Sharon Pediatrics could continue to serve their needs and when and if Gray-Clarke would re-open her practice.

Other options for pediatric care in the area are available, but most involve a longer drive.

Parents are concerned also about issues of insurance compatability and at what hospitals their pediatricians would have admitting privileges.

At Macony Pediatrics in Great Barrington, office manager Laurie Viebrock said she has received many calls from patients of Sharon Pediatrics. Macony is accepting new patients. So, too, is Torrington-Winsted Pediatrics, with offices in those two towns, as well as Canton. There is also Kent Meds/Peds in Kent and Hudson River Community Health in Amenia. Officials from those organizations did not return phone calls by press time.

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