Memorial Hospital to eliminate Birthing Center, ICU and inpatient unit

February 29, 2016 1:12 pm

By News Staff

news@abc6.com

The Care New England Health System Board of Directors announced a restructuring at Memorial Hospital on Monday.

Under the restructuring, the hospital plans to eliminate its Birthing Center, one medical/surgical inpatient unit, and the intensive care unit.

The announcement comes after more than 2,600 people signed an online petition to keep the Birthing Center open.

"It’s devastating," Emily Olson of Cranston reacted to ABC6 News. She has two children: one delivered at a traditional maternity unit and, looking for a more personal experience, decided to have her other child delivered at the Birthing Center. "I think this is a huge loss for families in Rhode Island."

Memorial Hospital, which is affiliated with Care New England, has operated for more than a century as medical/surgical hospital.

According to Dr. Michael Dacey, president of Memorial, the changes planned at the hospital will create a largely outpatient facility with a wide assortment of primary care and specialty services on site, as well as an Emergency Department, orthopedic, and outpatient surgical services, and a small inpatient unit. "In the absence of taking action, Memorial as a resource for the community could be put in jeopardy and we don’t want that," he said.

The existing rehabilitation center, which offers both inpatient and outpatient services, will remain open.

Planned changes at Memorial include:

-Obstetrical services, which will move to Kent or Women & Infants hospitals, both part of the Care New England system, pending regulatory approval.

-Inpatient rotations for the Memorial internal Medicine Residency Program will move to Kent and continue at the Providence VA Hospital.

The changes that will be made throughout the Care New England system will result in an undetermined number of layoffs as they eliminate duplicate positions, causing unease among workers. "They’re putting profits over patients and families in the state will suffer," said Birthing Center Nurse Millicent Kriste.

Other specialties such as pulmonary/sleep medicine, nutrition, cardiology, The Cancer Center, The Endoscopy Center, the New England Pediatric Institute of Neurodevelopment, and clinics for dermatology, cardiology, gastroenterology, geriatrics and rheumatology will remain open.

Work on the restructuring plan begins immediately, and it will take several months to complete.

The United Nurses and Allied Professionals Local 5082 President Rita Brennan says the union will fight this: "I intend to fully review and consider the union’s options with legal counsel, and will move forward with any reasonable efforts that will protect our members and Memorial patients."