Opponents of closing maternity ward at Alexian Brothers in Elk Grove Village take case to state board
Opponents of Ascension’s plan to halt obstetric services at Alexian Brothers Medical Center in Elk Grove Village took their case to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board, which held a hearing this week in Elk Grove Village.
They gave testimony highlighting potential risks to expectant mothers as childbirth services are consolidated under the umbrella of the St. Alexius Women and Children’s Hospital in Hoffman Estates.
Polly Davenport, interim CEO at Alexian Brothers and Ascension Illinois senior vice president, defended the closure as part of a broader strategy to centralize specialized care at St. Alexius. She emphasized 89% of current labor and delivery staff members have agreed to transition to St. Alexius.
“We are confident that once the community in general becomes comfortable with this approach, it will realize the patient care benefits of consolidated services into the (Ascension) Centers of Excellence,” she said.
But Skylar Vogt, a labor and delivery nurse at the 28-bed unit at Alexian Brothers, said the unit delivered on average 130 babies monthly for the last four months and called the closure “a decision made by people of privilege.”
Angela Filpi, a former labor and delivery nurse at Alexian Brothers, had harsh words for Ascension’s decision.
“The haste with which this decision was made reflects the flippant attitude and insufficient understanding of how to manage those deliveries when they don’t go as planned,” she said. “What will happen when a mother presents to the emergency room at Alexian Brothers in active labor and the umbilical cord has prolapsed?”
Elk Grove Village resident Ryan Bookler testified the closure represents a pattern of reduced health care services by Ascension, citing its closure of the offices of his pulmonologist and his son’s podiatrist.
“Ascension has repeatedly shown that they do not care about the health and well-being of their patients, doctors, nurses and support staff,” he said.
The state review board will make a final decision at its Nov. 18 meeting at the Bolingbrook Golf Club, 2001 Rodeo Drive, with written public comments accepted until Oct. 29.