Ontario, Calif.-based Prime Healthcare plans to consolidate obstetrical services from three Illinois hospitals into two regional maternal care centers and commit $1 million in grants to community maternal health initiatives.
The system will develop what it calls centers of excellence for maternal care at Saint Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago and Olympia Fields (Ill.) Hospital, according to a Sept. 1 news release shared with Becker’s. The move will coincide with the consolidation and suspension of obstetrics services at Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, Ill., Mercy Medical Center in Aurora, Ill., and Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago. The obstetrics service lines at the three hospitals will be suspended effective Oct. 1, a Prime Healthcare spokesperson told Becker’s.
Prime attributed the consolidation to years of financial distress, ownership changes and declining birth rates and volumes. The system said it weighed low and declining utilization, duplicated obstetrical capacity within a short distance and the ability of the designated centers to absorb deliveries.
All affected employees will be offered a position within their hospital, with more than three times as many openings as affected positions, according to the release.
The $1 million will go to community-based nonprofits working on prenatal and postpartum access and maternal health barriers, the release said. Prime also plans to expand partnerships with federally qualified health centers.
“By providing $1 million in grants directly to nonprofit community maternal health initiatives and expanding collaboration with FQHCs and trusted community providers, we can bring prenatal and postpartum care closer to where families live while concentrating deliveries at Centers of Excellence with the teams necessary to provide the highest level of care,” Sunny Bhatia, MD, president and CMO of Prime Healthcare, said in the release.
At the Becker's 11th Annual IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: The Future of AI & Digital Health, taking place September 14–17 in Chicago, healthcare executives and digital leaders from across the country will come together to explore how AI, interoperability, cybersecurity, and revenue cycle innovation are transforming care delivery, strengthening financial performance, and driving the next era of digital health. Apply for complimentary registration now.
