An unnamed emergency room services provider terminated its contract with St. Margaret’s, and the hospital hasn’t been able to find another ER provider or attract enough staff to continue operations. The hospital also suffered a recent cyberattack, which delayed the revenue cycle process. Increased use of temporary staffing agencies also put a dent in the hospital’s budget.
Tim Muntz, President and CEO of St. Margaret’s, and Terry Judd, chair of the board, detailed plans in the Jan. 20 letter to staff to temporarily close the system’s hospital in Peru and move services to its Spring Valley, Ill., location.
St. Margaret’s already had plans to convert the facility into a rural emergency hospital, and its leaders aim to accelerate those efforts.
Employees were told in the letter to apply for open positions elsewhere in the system.
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