I have had the good fortune to work with amazing people, they are what makes the place so special. It is a fiercely dedicated group of women, one hell of a dedicated man, most days we love what we do.
At 4 am this seems like the best way that we can get the word out and reach out to those who may be interested and hopefully concerned. Our little hospital on the coast of Maine is struggling financially, nothing new there. It's everywhere, on every level. The administrators have made the agonizing decision that if $600,000 is not raised by March 10th 2009, the OB unit will be closed sometime at the end of May. I do not blame the hospital, board, past or present administrators. I know that this was a wrenching decision to make. They feel that they have no choice. The way I'm beginning to see it is that this is a symptom of our breaking health care system. There has been a trend over the last few years of hospitals closing OB departments, they are not great sources of revenue for hospitals.
It's late and my brain is tired so the rest of this post is something I wrote a couple weeks ago. After my coffee I will let you know about fundraising events.
The kernel of truth and hope that I have witnessed time and time again as a labor and delivery nurse is that no matter how hard it hurts, women keep going and they survive. One aspect of this truth that drew me to this work is that not only do women survive but that the process has the potential to be empowering and life altering.
I believe that the dedication of the staff, and the care laboring women and new families receive at the Maternity Department at Blue Hill Memorial Hospital are unique. We hear this from parents who are starting families, who themselves were born at BHMH, - they value their community and they want their children to be born and raised here. It is demostrated by others who come from points Down East, Mount Desert Island and the greater Bangor area, some traveling hours in labor over rough roads because they chose to deliver their babies at Blue Hill Memorial Hospital. It is reflected by the fact that, in the several years I have worked there, women have come from California, Alaska, and Maryland specifically to BH to birth their babies. Those women had family ties in the area, but certainly could have stayed where they lived to labor and deliver.
We are a small unit and have been afforded the luxury of giving women one-on-one care during their stay. We support women in a comfortable family friendly environment. It's a wonderful place to work, but more importantly a wonderful place to have a baby. I know that the way we support women is rare for a hospital environment, this is in large part because of the beliefs of our care providers, including midwives, medical doctors, osteopaths and nurses. I feel pretty safe saying that we collectively believe in women and their ability to give birth.
We are going through hard times right now; the hospital is being hit hard by the recession as is everyone. The hospital recently made some layoffs, however it seems as if that is not enough to remedy the dire situation. I cannot stand by silently and watch while decision may be made to close the OB unit. Closing the OB unit at BHMH will cause families from local community and beyond to lose an option of a rare and wonderful place to have a baby. I don't think we as a community can afford to lose what Blue Hill Memorial Hospital offers for women and their families.
Please contact me if you'd like me to update or include something.
Dear Karen,
ReplyDeleteThe article you have presented is accurate and very moving.
I have worked in a hospital and its affiliate for 25 years.In those 25 years the L&D has been moved from Roanoke Hospital to Community Hospital back to Roanoke Hospital in an attempt to restructure, reorganize, to meet standard of care in a cost effective manner.
Healthcare has changed in the last quarter century-technically,medically,philosophically.
The philosophy in treatment now ncludes "hurry-up-please" with the "human touch" waining. Making due with 'less staff' and 'longer hours'.
You have been blessed to have been afforded the opportunity to work in tandem with other excellent staff in a very important area of health care, offering one-on-one support while providing care.
I am proud of you for having taken the time, for having shared the problem and for having reach out in support of the Blue Hill OB.and for having voiced factually and accurately the changes that need to be implemented in our health care system.
May God continue to bless you and your co-workers "helping hands" ,
Love you,
Auntie Ellen
Dear Ladies,
ReplyDeleteI am deeply moved by your plight. There are certain areas in life that should not be strictly limited by cost and cost alone, and the service you provide is one of them. My heart also goes out to all the mothers-to-be in your area who will be forced to travel unnecessarily for what is sometimes in essence an emergency service. I can easily foresee situations where Blue Hill Hospital will have to admit mothers so they can deliver in a safe environment - but there will be no trained staff working as a well practiced team to ensure the safest deliveries possible. For example, if my wife were in labor I would never risk the drive to Ellwsworth in a blizzard. Births often occur at unexpected speeds, and deliveries in the back seats of cars are to be avoided whenever remotely possibility. Saving a few dollars is scandalous if it results in a birth gone wrong and a brand-new life lost.
And then there is the question of breaking up a team that has been providing a valuable service for years. Where will the nurses go? Surely nowhere as the team they have built. What a waste, to scatter them around to local health care facilities. The total of the team is always greater than the sum of its parts.
Surely there are other areas where costs could be trimmed or even slashed, other, less critical services that could be cut back, but eliminating such a crucial service as OB is, in my opinion, utter madness.
I wish you all the good fortune in the world, ladies, and I will pray for a little enlightened wisdom for your hospital's administrators.
With kindest regards from Prague, where I spend 60 dollars a month for full (health, dental, eye) care and the maximum co-pay is 3 dollars a day for hospitalization, with co-pay for a doctor visit set at $1.50,
Bob Strider
Bob,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your comments and insight into the ramifications of what closing the OB department would mean for our community.
One would think that this is obvious to everyone, you are right it is utter madness.
I think the way our healthcare system now functions is a strong undertow that is threatening to drown us all, it is reaching into every facet of our economy . It's really a travesty that healthcare is not seen as a right by our government, but a privilege for fewer and fewer of our citizens who can afford it. It should not be a for profit endeavor pandering to the interest of megacorporations in the drug and insurance industries. It should be a system that can actually take care of people, and the fact that it can't even provide care for healthy people doing a natural thing, like having babies is unconscionable. Prague here we come!
Karen