Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has cut 50 jobs systemwide, according to a Winston-Salem Journal report.
Wake Forest Baptist acquired High Point (N.C.) Regional Health, a 351-bed hospital with more than 2,600 employees, last month. On Sept. 5, the day it announced it completed the acquisition, the healthcare system had 16,871 employees, according to the report.
System officials told the Winston Salem-Journal the job cuts are across an integrated healthcare network that includes multiple hospitals, clinics, physician practices, diagnostic centers and other facilities. The system did not say what positions were cut, but it did say no direct patient care positions were affected.
Wake Forest Baptist attributed the job cuts to its efforts "to operate more effectively and efficiently to provide the quality, cost-effective healthcare that our patients deserve and expect."
"We recognize that our people are our greatest asset, and this decision is not taken lightly," the system said.
Wake Forest Baptist said affected employees can apply for open jobs suited to their qualifications and were offered severance and career transition services, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.
The most recent job cuts come more than a year after the system announced it would transfer outpatient professional billing services to nThrive. The move affected as many as 755 employees. According to the report, Wake Forest Baptist in 2014 also announced it would cut 350 jobs in additional cost restructuring.
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