Within the span of a few weeks, two Wyoming hospitals will cut labor and delivery services due to staff shortages and increased costs from employing travel nurses, Wyoming Public Media reported May 20.
South Lincoln Medical Center in Kemmerer will end its labor and delivery services June 1, while Memorial Hospital of Carbon County in Rawlins will close those services June 15.
Providing these services was a challenge because it requires a large staff at all hours, Stephanie Hinkle, Memorial Hospital's marketing and communications director, told the station. It is especially difficult in rural areas, she added.
The pandemic made the issue worse as more staff was needed amid COVID-19 surges. Memorial Hospital is spending $100,000 a week on travel staff, Ms. Hinkle told the station.
"As you can imagine, that very quickly erodes an institution's cash position," she said.
This was also a challenge for South Lincoln, leading to its decision to end labor and delivery services.
"That was kind of a choice that we ended up having to make because nobody wants to live in a community without a hospital in it," Chris Krell, MD, a family practice doctor at South Lincoln, told the station.
South Lincoln is an hour away from another hospital with labor and delivery services while Memorial Hospital is more than 90 minutes away, according to the report.
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