Cristina Domingues/Public Relations Advisor/Rochester Regional Health, moderated a press conference with local media via Zoom on Thursday afternoon, with WCCHS CEO David Kobis and President of UMMC/RRH-Dan Ireland to discuss the changes coming to the Wyoming County Community Health System’s obstetrics program.
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Press release
WYOMING COUNTY COMMUNITY HEALTH SYSTEM ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO ITS OBSTETRICS PROGRAM
Warsaw, N.Y., April 26, 2023 – Wyoming County Community Health System (WCCHS) today announced a change to its obstetrics program. According to David Kobis, Chief Executive Officer, the number of births at WCCHS has declined for many years and now is at the point where maintaining a rural Obstetrics (OB) program in the area presents quality of care and unsustainable financial challenges for Wyoming County.
After many months of analysis and numerous discussions with the Hospital Board, WCCHS is announcing the suspension of its Maternal/OB program effective June 1, 2023. The hospital made this difficult decision for several reasons: the health and wellbeing of residents and the scarcity of maternal health and pediatric providers being the most prominent. Wyoming County is not alone – currently there are hundreds of rural hospitals facing these same challenges both in New York, and across the country.
As it became clear that this action was necessary, WCCHS reached out to United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC), a Rochester Regional Health facility in Batavia, to provide continuity of Maternal Health/OB services as close to Warsaw and Wyoming County as possible.
David Kobis, CEO of Wyoming County Community Health System commented, “These are extraordinary and unprecedented times in healthcare that have forced us to make tough decisions. As we make changes to our services, WCCHS remains committed to ensuring its patients and community receive ready access to high quality care throughout our region by leveraging our community partners.”
UMMC is well positioned to work with WCCHS as it currently operates a rural OB office in Warsaw, less than a mile from WCCHS. Staffed with more than five OB and specialist physicians and four midwives, UMMC provides high quality OB services to Warsaw and Wyoming County. UMMC, just 25 miles away, has more than enough obstetrical capacity to assume all of WCCHS’ annual deliveries. Further, UMMC will ensure that patients’ pre-natal and post-natal care remains at WCCHS as much as possible following this transition.
This decision will allow WCCHS to continue its focus on creating stability in times of unprecedented transition in healthcare.
WCCHS OB patients with questions about this transition of OB care to UMMC should call (585) 786-8940, Ext. 4543.
Dan Ireland, President of United Memorial Medical Center commented “United Memorial Medical Center and the entire Rochester Regional Health system is committed to ensuring that the women of Wyoming County and the surrounding communities have ready access to the services that they need. We’re proud of our record as a Baby-Friendly designated birth facility and it has been our experience that through close partnership with existing healthcare systems and providers we can sustain high quality, continuous access to the care our communities need. We are pleased to work with WCCHS and Wyoming County during this transition.”
Prior to this announcement, WCCHS reached out to UMMC to coordinate a smooth transition once this change goes into effect. It is vitally important that the labor and delivery patients seen at WCCHS continue to receive high-quality care they need and deserve, close to home. We take pride in being good partners with other health care organizations and were willing to help answer the call when this need arose.
What Do Patients Need to Know Today?
Currently, UMMC offers OB care locally at its Warsaw office located at 121 S. Main St., #1, Warsaw, NY 14569. Patients seeking OB care during this transition period can reach out to that office to schedule an appointment by calling (585) 786-8350. WCCHS and UMMC will work closely with the provider teams to ensure continuity of care during this time.
What is UMMC Doing to Improve Access to OB Care in Warsaw?
UMMC intends to move its current office to the WCCHS main campus later in 2023. The office will also be expanding services to five days a week and adding staff to take on additional patients in the near future. As a result of these changes, women of all ages from adolescence through pregnancy and menopause will be able to continue to receive obstetrical care close to WCCHS. Pregnant women can also continue their routine check-ups and diagnostics in Warsaw, close to home, right up until the time of their delivery.
As I listened to the interview posted on Facebook by Video News Service when the Wyoming County Community Hospital (WCCH) CEO announced the closing of the maternity floor, I couldn’t help but think about how obvious it is that business exchanges are more important to the leaders than serving and addressing the community in Wyoming county. The labor and delivery floor at WCCH has played an essential role in the community for years. Although the statistics and facts support suspending services on the floor, how it was addressed did not reflect empathy for the nurses and community affected by this sudden and life-changing decision.
The leaders at WCCH should provide effective and inspiring leadership by actively participating in all programs. When a leader actively involves themself in understanding the day-to-day operations of the maternity floor and analyzes the intricacies of the job, it becomes apparent how hard the OB nurses work. Not only do the nurses care for patients, observe and assess, administer medications, track patient progress, and complete important paperwork, but they also stay abreast of new research and technology in the field. During the interview, Mr. Kobis, the CEO, commented, “nurses on our floor who would sit for two and three and four days with nothing to do, and it’s very hard to maintain competencies.” Whether this comment is research-based or was, Mr. Kobis’ opinion/observation is unknown. Did leadership notice the OB nurses losing skills over time and not step in to provide professional development and support? If so, it sounds more like a problem with the leadership competencies. There are nurses on the maternity floor at WCCH that have served the community for over 30 years and delivered more than hundreds of babies each. They are some of the best nurses. They have spent time away from their families on holidays to care for other families, pledged overtime, saved lives, committed themselves through Covid, and supported each other in doing what is best for patients and the community. They are dedicated and hard-working. In fact, one of the OB nurses was nominated for Nurse of the Year in New York State by the March of Dimes, and two have earned Nurse of Distinction from the hospital. To me, that says a lot of about the caliber of the nurses and their COMPETENCIES on the maternity floor.
The comments made about the nursing staff on the WCCH maternity floor throughout the interview lacked support, guidance, and empathy. The comments were insulting and did not represent the nurses that serve on the maternity floor and WCCH. Recognizing their dedication to the profession and the community over the years would have been the reputable thing to do. Although it was mentioned that nurses would not be laid off, this will still affect their schedules, their lives, and disrupt their professional goals and aspirations. This was a business exchange for the leaders at WCCH but not for the nurses. The maternity floor at WCCH may need to suspend its services, but leaders at WCCH should also recognize the nurses by making them feel accomplished, empowered, and valued for their service. They deserve it!
As the mother of 7 children, all delivered at WCCH, (as well as one who didn’t make it home with me), I can’t say enough about the care and compassion that I received on that maternity floor! The COMPETENCE of the nursing staff should NEVER have been mentioned! What a cop-out! $$$$ and profits aside, our rural communities have been blessed to have had this service available to us for so many years. THANK YOU to all who were ever a part of that special, caring and COMPETENT group!