Taunton, Mass.-based Morton Hospital notified the state department of public health it intends to close its maternity ward, according to a Taunton Daily Gazette report.
With the 90-day notice, the maternity unit could close in mid-April.
Ron Kleinman, MD, physician-in-chief at Boston-based MassGeneral Hospital for Children cited quality as reasoning behind the plans.
"After an extensive review of the program, MassGeneral Hospital for Children has determined that the extremely low volume of deliveries in Morton Hospital's obstetrics program, which averages fewer than one per day, is a significant impediment to maintaining core maternal and neonatal clinical competencies needed to safeguard mothers and infants," he said in a statement to Becker's. "These competencies, which include neonatal resuscitation and intubation, are critical benchmarks that ensure care meets the highest standards of quality and safety, and are readily available in other Taunton-area hospitals' higher volume obstetrical services. Therefore, MGHfC can no longer guarantee consistent, round-the-clock neonatal hospitalist services to Morton Hospital."
The notice filing comes about two months after Morton Hospital's owner, Boston-based Steward Health Care System, temporarily shuttered the unit. Steward, which has a staffing contract with MGH and its parent company Boston-based Partners HealthCare, reopened the unit after the state DOH said it initially did not go through the proper regulatory process prior to the closure.
Steward could still find another organization to contract with to provide neonatal hospitalists for the Morton Hospital unit, in which case the closure plans would be canceled, according to the report.
Morton Hospital President Deborah Bitsoli told staff if the closure plans go through, affected employees may receive job offers at other Steward hospitals, the Taunton Daily Gazette reports.
Alyssa Rege contributed to this report.
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