On Oct. 9, Providence said it would sunset the augmentative and alternative communication specialty service at Providence Home Health Portland, resulting in the elimination of three speech-language pathologist positions. The three affected workers remain employed through Nov. 8, and the health system has paused the program end date pending collaboration with key stakeholders, a Providence spokesperson told Becker's.
The 51-hospital system, based in Renton, Wash., said the move comes as it has restructured some of its teams this year and focused on core services.
"We [recently] announced we're sunsetting the augmentative and alternative communication specialty service at Providence Home Health Portland," a statement reads.
"Since making the announcement, based on valued feedback from referral sources and community partners, we have decided to take additional time to further review and understand the best way to support these patients going forward. We'll continue caring for all our patients receiving AAC through their current care plan."
Providence also noted that it has historically provided specialty services that are not traditionally part of home health, such as palliative care, remote patient monitoring and AAC services. While some home health and hospice roles were eliminated this year, the majority of them were offered and accepted comparable positions on Providence teams, according to the health system's statement. Providence said several of its hospice caregivers have also accepted its offer for voluntary reductions.
The Oregon Nurses Association, which represents 20,000 nurses and healthcare professionals across the state, opposes the job cuts, citing potential deterioration of patient care. The union also claims that amid the restructuring, there has been no decrease in management positions.
Providence disputed ONA's claims, saying that "in the last few years, we have reduced the number of management positions in both home health and hospice through attrition and some layoffs."
Editor's note: This article was updated on Oct. 10.