The timing may seem odd, but Wichita is now down one emergency room

It may seem like somewhat strange timing given the COVID-19 outbreak, but two years after opening, the Webb Road Emergency Room has closed.

“We didn’t have enough business and traffic,” said Badr Idbeis, CEO of the Kansas Medical Center, which opened the ER. “It was clear that it was not financially viable.”

The problem was patients weren’t directed there, Idbeis said.

He said he opened the ER because “we thought it was a needed service in that location.”

However, he said, “When we opened, nobody said they’re not going to bring ambulance service.”

Idbeis said he’ll open a cardiology office in the 10,000-square-foot space instead.

“It will continue to be a KMC facility.”

KMC’s main campus is just east of 21st and 159th streets in Andover.

KMC is moving its cardiology office that’s currently at K-96 and 29th Street. The new office should open before the end of June.

When asked if maybe that’s a facility that could help other hospitals in the area if there’s an overflow from coronavirus cases, Idbeis said there’s a bigger problem — and that’s a lack of personal protective equipment, such as gowns, N95 masks and face shields for medical workers.

Idbeis — speaking through double masks on Friday — said he wants the government to push harder for the equipment.

“We don’t have enough PPEs.”

This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 4:47 AM.