Department of Emergency Medicine

Christine Werneke, M.S. (left), president and chief operating officer of UVM Health Network - Home Health & Hospice, and Stephen Leffler, M.D., professor of emergency medicine and president and chief operating officer of the UVM Medical Center

(FEBRUARY 22, 2024) In a VT Digger opinion piece, Christine Werneke, M.S., president and chief operating officer of UVM Health Network - Home Health & Hospice, and Stephen Leffler, M.D., professor of emergency medicine and president and chief operating officer of the UVM Medical Center, discussed the effects of Vermont’s severe lack of capacity for patients who need long-term care outside of the hospital.

“The situation has become chronic and is causing constant overcrowding in our hospitals across the state, straining our health care staff and negatively impacting our patients and all of the communities we serve across our region,” they wrote. “By collaborating and investing in solutions like expanding nursing home care, increasing funding for home health services, and implementing policies that promote the long-term sustainability of our health care infrastructure, we can ensure that our friends, family members and neighbors can live their best lives here in Vermont without fear of not receiving the care and support they need from their trusted health care system.”