Several healthcare organizations have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances, focus on more in-demand services or address staffing shortages.
Here are nine closures or services ending, announced, advanced or finalized that Becker's has reported on since Jan. 10.
1. Commonwealth Health is closing the emergency department at Moses Taylor Hospital in Scranton, Pa., on April 1. The emergency department at Regional Hospital of Scranton will become the main emergency department for Commonwealth Health operations.
2. Charleston, W.Va.-based Saint Francis Hospital closed its emergency department Feb. 1 as part of a plan to transition the facility into the state's first full-service orthopedic specialty hospital. Emergency and critical care services will transfer to Thomas Memorial Hospital in South Charleston.
3. Portland-based Legacy Health will close the Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center's family birth center in Gresham, Ore., as staff shortages and financial losses continue to challenge the health system. As of March 17, pregnant patients arriving at the hospital's emergency department will be transferred to other local hospitals, such as Randall Children's Hospital in Portland.
4. Ascension Medical Group St. Vincent plans to partially or fully end services at 11 clinics across Indiana. Most of the affected locations will close within 90 days and patients will be notified in the coming weeks.
5. Greenville, N.C.-based ECU Health is closing five regional outpatient clinics as part of a cost-cutting strategy to ensure the long-term sustainability of the health system. The facilities include a women's clinic in Williamston, a family medicine clinic in Jacksonville, an immediate care clinic in Wilson, and family medicine clinics in Aurora and Snow Hill, N.C.
6. Anchorage-based Alaska Regional is closing its Alaska Regional Senior Health Clinic on Feb. 28 because of staffing shortages.
7. Blytheville, Ark.-based Great River Cancer Center will close in March due to financial struggles.
8. Ascension St. Vincent's Riverside in Jacksonville, Fla. will be ending maternity care on March 19. Maternity care will continue at Ascension St. Vincent's Southside in Jacksonville and Ascension St. Vincent's Clay County in Middleburg, Fla. The move will affect 62 registered nurses as well as six other positions.
9. Hollister, Calif.-based Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital closed its home health services department Jan. 31. Hazel Hawkins interim CEO Mary Casillas said the department had "consistently declining volumes." She said there are duplicate services within the community that will be able to provide needed services to its patients.