
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, September 9, 1994                   TAG: 9409090069
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-3   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: WYTHEVILLE                                 LENGTH: Short

BOARD GIVES HOSPITAL OK FOR CENTER

Wythe County Community Hospital has gotten approval from the board of the Southwest Virginia Health Systems Agency as the site for a regional cancer treatment center, the same one sought by Pulaski Community Hospital and Radford Community Hospital.

The board recommended state approval for the Wytheville hospital Wednesday night at its meeting at the Airport Holiday Inn in Roanoke.

The recommendation now goes to the state Office of Resource Development, which is scheduled to complete its review of the application by Sept. 18. That will be forwarded to the office of the state health commissioner, where a decision is to be made by Nov. 7.

The oncology treatment center at Wytheville is a cooperative project involving the Radford hospital, Twin County Community Hospital in Galax and Giles Memorial Hospital in Pearisburg.

Radford still has its own application on file for the center, as does the Pulaski hospital. The two hospitals have been competing for the center for about two years. The board delayed making a recommendation for one or the other for several months to give them time to try to come up with a joint application, but no agreement ever was reached.

by CNB