Lexington (N.C.) Medical Center will close its labor and delivery unit by the end of June, reports Carolina Public Press.
The hospital, owned by Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Wake Forest Baptist Health, will still offer prenatal care and gynecological services. However, expectant mothers will be transferred to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, which is about 30 minutes away in Winston-Salem.
The hospital's delivery rates have steadily declined over the last decade, according to Julie Ann Freischlag, MD, CEO of Wake Forest Baptist Health, which owns the hospital.
Wake Forest Baptist Health leaders announced the decision Jan. 24, attributing the closure to a decadelong decline in births. The hospital performs less than one delivery a day and about one C-section every other month.
“This was a difficult but necessary decision that will help us better meet the needs of people here in Davidson County," Dr. Freischlag said in a news release. "It became clear to us that we needed to refocus our efforts on expanding women's health services that are most needed in the Lexington community."