Good Question: Parking problems at the hospital

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) — Here is a Good Question about finding parking at local hospitals. Before you say, ‘it can’t be that big of a deal’, just listen to this concern from one woman. She said:

“We are writing because we have a question for Strong’s Wilmot Cancer Center: When will the valet parking resume for cancer patients for whom it is difficult to navigate the large parking garage? We have asked several Strong employees and no one has the answer. This service was suspended in March 2020 and never resumed. My dad has weekly appointments for treatments at Wilmot and often has to walk very far from the garage to his appointment.”

I checked on the University of Rochester Medical Center’s website. There is a notice saying: "We’re sorry, but currently our valet parking has been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic."

When I reached out to hospital officials for a better, more specific explanation, they told me:

"Our valet parking is temporarily closed due to staffing shortages. We are working to recruit additional staff so that we can return this service to our patients and visitors as soon as possible."

That got me thinking, what about the other big hospital system in town, Rochester Regional Health?

There is valet parking at RGH. A spokesperson told me: "service never stopped, and we were able to safely continue to offer it through the COVID pandemic with attendants taking the proper precautions."

Back to Strong Hospital. They do have parking representatives at the main hospital entrance and at Wilmot to help visitors and patients get in and out of cars but again, with no valet. If you’re alone, you’re out of options and have to park yourself.

If you have a question you want Brennan to answer, e-mail him at GoodQuestion@WHEC.com.