Providence has eliminated three speech-language pathologist positions from its Providence Home Health Portland team in Oregon, a spokesperson confirmed to 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.
"Historically we've provided specialty services that are not traditionally part of home health, such as palliative care, remote patient monitoring and augmentative and alternative communication service," a statement reads. "Patients who need any of these services are now being referred to other care providers and/or device vendors in the community better positioned to meet their needs."
While some home health and hospice roles were eliminated, the majority of affected workers 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."