Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health System has laid off 140 employees, reduced the hours of 30 others and will leave another 30 positions vacant, according to an Akron Beacon Journal report.
The layoffs and other cuts were spread among the system's fully owned hospitals and other businesses and affected employees at all levels, including clinical care. However, no nurses who provide direct patient care were affected, according to the report. Those who were laid off will get a severance package and help finding new jobs.
"Like all responsible organizations, we…regularly monitor staffing to ensure appropriate levels and maximum productivity. This means that we must sometimes make difficult decisions regarding our workforce," Thomas Strauss, president and CEO of Summa, wrote in a letter to employees, according to the Beacon Journal.
Summa has been struggling financially, and Mr. Strauss wrote that the workforce cuts will allow the system to continue to care for its communities "for generations to come." The workforce cuts are expected to save the system millions annually.
This major workforce reduction comes less than a month after three Summa executives announced plans to leave the system. Mr. Strauss is also planning to retire at the end of this year, according to the Beacon Journal.