By MICHELLE BESAW
Staff Writer
CHAZY — Dr. Jay Bhasin will close his office here, leaving Chazy without a local doctor again.
Bhasin, who operates Plattsburgh Internal Medicine, has occupied the office at 9658 Route 9 for more than a year, building owner Denise Garnot said.
She said Bhasin has been accommodating patients at both locations while trying to find a doctor to work at the Chazy office.
"He got burned out," she assumed, noting that Bhasin recently told her he would be closing the office.
"Sometimes he couldn't make it up here, and they would just slap a sign on the door," she said.
Garnot, who has owned the building with her husband, Pete, for 13 years, said she is trying to market the location to another physician.
"Obviously, it's a need," she said. "Not everybody likes to go up to Champlain or to Plattsburgh. We need someone who's going to commit to being open five days a week."
Town Supervisor Staub Spiegel echoes that.
"I think there's a definite need in Chazy for a health center. They always had standing lines. Obviously, it showed there was a need."
He said senior citizens in the town need a nearby health-care provider, especially for those who cannot commute.
"It's just so convenient, being able to go there at a spur of the moment. It's a lot less traveling, especially for quick emergencies."
Which was the case for Lynn Kent, a six-year Chazy resident who has asthma.
"It was very disheartening," she said. "I was having severe problems with my asthma, and I was at the moment without a primary-care physician. I thought it was the perfect opportunity to take advantage of Dr. Bhasin's service."
But when she got to the office, she found a note taped to the door saying they were closed. She had to wait until her husband came home so she could go to Plattsburgh for treatment.
"Yes, we have transportation to seek other medical attention. But there are a lot of other people in this area that don't have that."
Kent, who is a nurse, praises Bhasin's practice.
"I've worked with Dr. Bhasin. He's an awesome doctor.
"I see that happen many times when a new doctor comes in: they get a flood of new patients," she said, referring to him trying to accommodate his patients in both Chazy and Plattsburgh.
According to the Plattsburgh Internal Medicine website, Bhasin's Chazy practice employed an emergency medical technician, a registered physician assistant and a front-desk associate.
Bhasin could not be reached Wednesday for comment.
Prior to Bhasin's practice, the building had been home to a Plattsburgh Medical Care branch, which closed in January 2009, citing a decline in service demand. That office was open for 10 years.
Garnot hopes a new doctor will move into the office.
"I can turn the whole building into apartments if I need to, but it's a nice doctor's office. We're trying to meet the need. We need to keep developing Chazy. We have some good businesses here."
E-mail Michelle Besaw at: mbesaw@pressrepublican.com
