Ascension closure of delivery services sparks protest
Protesters gathered outside Ascension Alexian Brothers Hospital in Elk Grove Village Tuesday, opposing Ascension’s decision to discontinue baby deliveries at the hospital.
It would involve closing the Women and Infant Services department, which offers labor, delivery and postpartum care, a special care nursery and lactation services.
Ascension plans to consolidate these services at Ascension Saint Alexius Women and Children's Hospital in Hoffman Estates.
Ascension announced the move as part of establishing a “dedicated labor and delivery center of excellence for our northwest region.” The closure requires approval from the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board. Once approved, inpatient deliveries will transfer to Hoffman Estates, while outpatient obstetrics will remain at the current location, Ascension officials said.
Ascension Illinois stated it is working “to ensure optimal patient outcomes, efficiency of resources and alignment with the needs of the communities we serve.”
However, protesters argue the closure negatively affects pregnant women and hurts underserved populations who rely on the hospital's emergency obstetric services.
Nursing staff who met with Ascension officials before protesting raised patient safety concerns about closing a department that has served the community for decades.
“We're an ER for pregnant people,” said Kaylyn Krolicki, a labor and delivery nurse since 2017. “This nursing team is like none other. Some have been there for 35 and 40 years.”
Krolicki cited a recent emergency where a woman arrived by ambulance with life-threatening eclampsia seizures.
“She didn't stop seizing, and we were able to transfer her to our operating room and have the baby within minutes,” she said. “She wouldn't have had an extra 15 minutes to be transferred to St. Alexius in that instance. She wouldn't have made it.”
Nurses emphasized the emergency department cannot handle pregnancies and worried about shifting the burden to already busy hospitals.
Angela Filpi, a former nurse at the Women and Infant Services department, expressed concern about communicating the change to patients in underserved communities.
“You have women in underserved areas that aren't going to understand,” she said. “They're going to show up here ready to deliver, and then what happens? They're going to be turned away.”
Pam Fogarty, a labor and delivery nurse with nearly 35 years at the hospital, noted the unit serves a diverse population, including those of Hispanic, Guatemalan and Ukrainian descent. In June alone, the unit handled 132 deliveries, up from 120 the previous month, nurses said.
More than 100 employees are affected. Not all are expected to accept the transfer. Ascension is offering a $5,000 retention bonus and 4% salary increase for those accepting positions at the Hoffman Estates location, nurses said.
“The care team who work on labor and delivery possess unique skills and they are extremely valuable members of Ascension Illinois,” an Ascension release stated. “We are collaborating with these associates to find positions that allow them to thrive by continuing to deliver exceptional patient care within our system.”