By Abigail Roberts
There’s a new plot twist in the ongoing story of the closure of the Fort Logan Hospital Birthing Spa.
Just three days before Ephraim McDowell Health plans to move inpatient labor and delivery services from Stanford to Danville, Cumberland Family Medical Center Inc.’s Women’s Care of the Commonwealth has announced it will be withdrawing from labor and delivery services for all OB/GYN patients at Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center (EMRMC).
The CFMC released a statement Friday, Feb. 13, and said Ephraim McDowell’s decision was made without the knowledge or consent of CFMC, which is the sole on-staff provider of women’s health care services at EMRMC.
“The doctors who provide care to Labor and Delivery patients at EMRMC are employees of CFMC, not the hospital,” the statement reads. “CFMC and its Women’s Care of the Commonwealth (WCOTC) clinics first learned of Ephraim McDowell’s decision to close Fort Logan through Ephraim McDowell’s public announcement.”
The group said CFMC was not consulted or notified of the imminent Fort Logan closure before the decision was made public on Jan. 16.
CFMC said the group has tried to engage Ephraim McDowell in a productive discussion on how to manage the care of Fort Logan patients at EMRMC.
“Until yesterday, however, EMRMC has taken the position that the care of the Fort Logan patients does not involve CFMC, as it contended that Fort Logan providers would care for Fort Logan patients at EMRMC,” the statement reads.
But, four days before the pending FLH birthing spa closure, CFMC learned that Fort Logan providers will not manage labor and delivery at EMRMC.
“…which means that CFMC providers are the only providers at EMRMC who are qualified to manage the care of hundreds of Fort Logan labor and delivery patients per year,” the statement reads. “This sudden, unplanned increase in patient care responsibilities is not safe for established CFMC patients, and is not acceptable to CFMC.”
CFMC says when its physicians are on call at EMRMC, they are responsible for every laboring patient who presents to the hospital for care, not just established Women’s Care of the Commonwealth patients.
“Ephraim McDowell’s decision shifts the responsibility for care of potentially hundreds of additional patients onto the limited staff of CFMC,” the statement reads. “Because of Ephraim McDowell’s decision to discontinue labor and delivery services at Fort Logan without CFMC’s knowledge or a plan to support their providers, CFMC is now forced to discontinue Labor & Delivery care at EMRMC for all patients including those from Fort Logan as well as their own established WCOTC patients.
Dr. Loy, CEO of CFMC called it a very unfortunate situation over which he had no input or control.
“Had we been included in Ephraim McDowell’s decision-making process, we could have worked together to develop a thoughtful plan in the best interest of all patients,” Loy said. “Instead, CFMC learned of the Fort Logan closure when Ephraim McDowell announced it publicly and, since then, Ephraim McDowell has resisted our efforts to develop a plan for the safe management of patient care.”
CFMC said they are working with new and established patients to transition their care to other regional hospitals.
“We cannot place our patients or providers in a hospital where patient safety and clinical sustainability are at risk,” Loy said.
CFMC said their priority now is to safely manage the care of new and established patients and they will continue to provide prenatal and outpatient OB/GYN services at all its clinic locations.
“CFMC will work closely with each affected patient to facilitate childbirth and inpatient care at nearby hospitals that have adequate staffing and infrastructure to safely accommodate its patients’ needs,” the statement reads.
