DINWIDDIE COUNTY, Va. -- Hiram W. Davis Medical Center, a state-run hospital in Dinwiddie County that houses some of the most mentally and physically vulnerable, is closing after 50 years.
Martha Bryant, the mother of a patient at the facility, said she has been praying after receiving a phone call about the closure Friday morning.
“This scripted person from Central Office read me this script, what they wanted to say,” Bryant said. “It’s very alarming. It’s very worrisome.”
Hiram W. Davis Medical Center is slated to close no later than the end of 2027, according to officials with Virginia's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS).
“I’ve lived the process and it’s been a nightmare," Bryant said. "And it sounds like a new nightmare has begun.”
CBS 6 investigative reporter Melissa Hipilot met Taylor Bryant in June after his mother reached out to her after seeing a facility PowerPoint presentation slide from 2023 that mentioned "legionella mitigation.”
The 30-year-old man, who has the cognitive level of a 15-month-old child, has lived in and been cared for at the facility for the past seven years, according to his mother.
“Taylor is a precious child of God, and we chose life for him," Bryant said.
Documents obtained through a public records request showed uncontrolled levels of legionella were repeatedly detected in the water in showers, sinks, and ice machines at the state-run facility in 2021, 2022, 2023, and most recently, in March 2024.
Legionella bacteria can cause a serious type of pneumonia if people breathe in droplets of water containing the bacteria, or accidentally swallow contaminated water into their lungs.
A spokesperson for DBHDS previously told CBS 6 that the bacteria is within the plumbing system, and the conditions within the aging pipes at the building caused the problem. The agency has been working with the water vendor, and the health department, and they have contracted with experts in legionella mitigation to develop a plan to manage the issue.
WATCH: Legionella found in water at a Virginia medical facility that handles vulnerable patients
Since the facility opened 50 years ago, it has not undergone any significant renovations. As a result, "all of its building systems are nearing, or have exceeded, the end of their estimated life," DBHDS Commissioner Nelson Smith said.
Because of Hiram W. Davis Medical Center's condition, which would require extensive repairs, shuttering the facility was the "best option," Smith said.
"The building design does not allow for phased renovations, meaning that staff and residents would need to vacate the building for up to 24 months to accomplish any significant and costly repairs," Smith said.
The medical center, which was constructed in 1974 as a 94-bed facility and had 46 patients as of Aug. 6, is Dinwiddie County’s 11th largest employer.
“Currently the hospital employs around 200 people,” Morgan Ingram with Dinwiddie County Economic Development said.
Ingram said the county was not notified about the closing.
While state officials believe the closing process will take one to two years, Bryant thinks that timeframe is skewed.
"When people hear that something's closing, your employees start to leave," Bryant said. "And when your employees leave, they saw we have a staffing shortage, and you have to move, and they will change the deadline and it will be sooner.”
Dr. Alexis Aplasca, the chief medical officer for DBHDS, pledged to "work with families on the available discharge options that meet their loved one’s needs and preferences" as well as keep staff updated on the closure timeline and potential for transfer to other DBHDS facilities.
"The health, safety, and well-being of the patients and staff of HDMC remains our top priority,” Aplasca wrote.
Officials with Dinwiddie County said they will coordinate with the Virginia Employment Commission and their Rapid Response Team to help employees find new jobs.
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The Hiram W. Davis facility is the state agency's only medical center, according to its website. The facility provides "acute medical diagnosis, skilled, intermediate and long term care" for people "receiving services" in other DBHDS facilities as well as people with "intellectual and/or developmental disabilities within the community."
The closure will leave Virginia with 11 other state-run facilities across the Commonwealth.
Those include Central State Hospital in Dinwiddie, Eastern State Hospital in Williamsburg, Western State Hospital in Staunton, Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute in Annandale, Southern Virginia Mental Health Institute in Danville and Southwestern Virginia Mental Health Institute in Marion.
Additional behavioral health facilities facilities include Catawba Hospital in Catawba, Commonwealth Center for Children and Adolsecents in Staunton and Piedmont Geriatric Hospital in Nottoway County.
The agency also operates a facility for behavioral rehabilitation, Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation, in Nottoway County and one remaining training center, Southeastern Virginia Training Center, in Chesapeake.
As part of Virginia's 2012 settlement with the Department of Justice, the state agreed to move from institutional to community-based care. As a result, the state agreed to close four of its five training centers.
The remaining training center, which was selected to remain open because it was being renovated at the time of the state's agreement with DOJ, is described as an "Intermediate Care Facility" with highly structured habilitation services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
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