A support rally is planned for Feb. 8 and Feb. 10 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Bates, Miller and Sims in Stanford
By Abigail Roberts
A recent decision by Ephraim McDowell Health to move labor and delivery services from Stanford to Danville has mothers-to-be, providers and families rallying together in hopes of stopping or delaying the change.
As of Thursday, Feb. 5, a petition to keep Fort Logan Hospital’s obstetrics services in Stanford has garnered over 4,000 signatures online and on paper.
Ephraim McDowell Health announced the decision – which they said will improve care in the community – on Jan. 16 and said the change will take effect Feb. 16.
“Mothers and babies at Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center will have immediate access to neonatologists and a Level II Special Care Nursery without having to be transferred to another facility should the need arise. In addition, EMRMC provides access to high acuity OB support that facilitates all patients with continued high-quality care and no disruption,” the press release states.
A community meeting was held in Stanford Jan. 22 during which local residents, expecting families and providers came together to discuss the pending closure of the Fort Logan Birthing Spa. The meeting also included commentary from Amish midwife Mattie Byler, who spoke on behalf of the Amish and Mennonite communities.
During the meeting it was announced that the Fort Logan Hospital Birthing Spa had received yet another Women’s Choice Award for 2026. That is in addition to being ranked in the top 3% nationally, as well as being ranked Best Hospital for Maternity Care.
Ephraim McDowell Health said the decision will improve care in the community.
Dr. James Miller of Bates, Miller and Sims, disagrees.
While Ephraim McDowell Health has said this change represents only an 11-mile difference – or about a 15-minute drive – Miller said it translates to 20-25 extra minutes before taking into account rural roads, weather, traffic, parking and navigating a larger facility.
Miller, as well as the other delivering providers at Bates, Miller and Sims, all live within five minutes of the Fort Logan Hospital Birthing Spa.
“The minutes matter,” Miller said this week.
After delivering babies in Stanford for more than 40 years, Miller said he has countless stories that prove the additional minutes matter.
“20 minutes is too long,” he said.
Not only the close proximity, but the unique services they offer is something expectant mothers have come to love about the Fort Logan Hospital Birthing Spa. Those amenities including private rooms with whirlpool tubs, a garden patio, room for all of the family, low c-section rates, father-assisted birth, and around-the-clock care from patients’ family doctor. Massages are also provided.
“The same face you see throughout pregnancy is the face that shows up to deliver your baby; a true rarity in modern medicine,” an update from the community meeting states.
The loss of the Fort Logan Hospital Birthing Spa would affect expecting mothers not only in Lincoln County, but surrounding counties that come to Stanford, Miller said.
“People in parts of Garrard County, most of Rockcastle County and most of the southern part of Lincoln County and the eastern part of Casey County – four counties – have to come through this intersection to get to Danville,” Miller said.
The group argues that this will create a OB desert in Lincoln and surrounding areas.
“According to research cited from the Journal of the American Medical Association, communities that lose birthing units experience: more home births; more births in hospitals without OB care; higher rates of premature delivery; and higher infant mortality rates,” the community update states.
Concerned community members were encouraged to contact the Ephraim McDowell Board of Diretors, as well as State Representative David Meade (R-Stanford) who serves as a board member.
The group said they are asking for transparency, negotiation and compassion.
“If closure cannot be stopped, then at minimum: phase patients out responsibly; consider a delay; do not strip women of choice during one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives,” the petition update states.
Ephraim McDowell Health maintains that the decision has been made to better serve mothers and babies.
“The EMRMC OB unit is able to provide additional capacity (18 beds) and serve more mothers and babies and includes a Level II Special Care Nursery to care for our community’s vulnerable babies right where they are born,” the press release states. “Moving OB services from Fort Logan Hospital enables us to elevate the level of care provided to our OB mothers and babies and serve our community’s healthcare needs more efficiently.”
Jeremy Cocanougher, Director of Marketing & Public Relations at Ephraim McDowell Health said Friday, Feb. 6 that the consolidation will take effect at 7 a.m. on Feb. 16, as originally announced.
Memories of a promise
When the hospital was acquired by Ephraim McDowell Health in 2002, Miller and others in the community who were present at board meetings leading up to the final acquisition recall there was a promise made to always maintain obstetric services in Lincoln County.
An open records request was sent by the Lincoln County Daily News to the Lincoln County Courthouse for records related to the acquisition. Included in the returned documents was the deed for Fort Logan Hospital to Ephraim McDowell Health.
The deed states under Restriction on Use of Property that, except for any temporary interruption of business, the grantee (EMHFL, INC.), its successors and assigns shall use and occupy the property for use as a full-time acute and emergency health care facility in Lincoln County.
Ephraim McDowell Health has assured the public that Fort Logan Hospital will remain open for those services, but Miller and other local providers recalled during the Jan. 22 meeting that they remember obstetrics being included in that promise.
A search of The Interior Journal archives resulted in a March 15, 2001 article titled “Fort Logan Hospital links its future to Danville’s Ephraim McDowell.”
In the article, Tom Smith, who was chief executive officer at Ephraim McDowell Health at the time, does mention obstetric services.
“Smith said that Ephraim McDowell intends to keep Fort Logan hospital as a 24-hour a day, seven day a week facility with an emergency room, obstetrical department, surgery department and improved diagnostic and treatment programs,” the article states.
Smith went on to say he would make no guarantees that Ephraim McDowell will keep Fort Logan open indefinitely if it continued to lose money.
While Miller and others research legal remedies, the group is asking for more time to allow expecting mothers to deliver in Stanford and phase out the services over time.
“A family-friendly support rally has been scheduled to take place outside of Bates, Miller and Sims in Stanford on Sunday, Feb. 8 and Tues., Feb. 10 from 12 to 4 p.m.
“Heartfelt messages, statistics and creative posters are encouraged,” the group said. “We stand together—mothers and fathers, providers and patients, Amish, Mennonite, and English families alike—not in anger, but in resolve. We stand with faith that truth carries weight, that unity carries strength, and that compassion can still guide decision-making. Our babies deserve a safe beginning and our families deserve choice.”
