Patients are heading back to Trumbull Regional Medical Center after days of being turned away. Last week, staff was instructed by Steward to not accept patients while they battled whether to stay open - something that took the nurses by surprise.  

“It is despicable for corporate greed to prey on sick people and the people that take care of them,” Tom Connelly, the President of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees & United Nurses of America Local 2026 said. 

Nurses still showed up to their shifts but had to turn everyone away that wasn’t considered an emergency walk-in. That included patients in the behavioral health unit and staff was even redirecting all of the ambulances to non-Steward owned hospitals.

“The emergency room was very busy. I heard that,” Connelly said about other valley hospitals while Trumbull was turning people away. “…there were several ambulances waiting around the hospital at [Mercy Health’s] Saint Joseph's.”

Now, Trumbull Regional is being instructed to be fully back up and running because Steward reached an agreement with Medical Properties Trust - the company they owe millions of dollars to. MPT will assume all operating costs of Trumbull, Hillside Rehabilitation and Sharon Regional while they search for new owners. That agreement is scheduled to be finalized by a court next week.

Connelly said he's been told Trumbull Regional is close to new ownership.

However, there is still some doubt in the air as the hospital waits for things to be finalized. Some nurses started looking for new jobs while the rumors of closing swirled. Now that everything's back up and running, the nurses union is assessing their numbers to make sure the hospital is fully staffed. 

“I don't know how many have accepted other jobs elsewhere. I know that some accepted jobs but don’t intend to go to them now. I know some people that have accepted jobs and are leaving because they can take the uncertainty,” Connelly said. 

Connelly is encouraging everyone to stick with the hospital while things get sorted out. 

“I believe…under a new management that isn't a bunch of thieves and pirates that we are going to achieve fiscal stability as well as clinical excellence that we used to have before,” he said. 

Connelly told 21 News that, as of Monday, patients are starting to trickle back into the hospital for care and the staff is ready to serve them. 

A hearing is scheduled Tuesday for the Western Reserve Health Education group who’s working with Warren City Hospital to buy Trumbull Regional. It is unclear what will be discussed in that hearing or if it will still happen in light of last week's agreement.