Closing Falmouth Hospital Maternity Ward Is 'Dangerous': Nurses

FALMOUTH, MA — Nurses and upper Cape Cod residents aired objections to the closing of Falmouth Hospital's maternity and pediatric units during a teleconference hearing with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health last week.

The residents and nurses argued closing the facility reduces access for expectant mothers, putting them and their children in danger.

In March, Cape Cod Healthcare CEO Michael Lauf announced the closure of the five-bed inpatient pediatric service, nine-bed inpatient obstetrics service and eight-bassinet infant nursery.

When the maternity unit was closed, it was temporarily converted to ICU units to help nurses and doctors combat the coronavirus. Maternity services were transferred to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, but the closure has since become permanent. July 29 was the original target closure date.

Lauf said births at Falmouth Hospital have decreased over the last couple of years, and last year, just 328 babies were born at Falmouth Hospital, less than one per day. He said the economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis also forced hospital officials to make a tough decision.

"The COVID-19 crisis forced us to expedite the decision," Lauf said. "We are confident that Falmouth Hospital patients will get the best possible care at Cape Cod Hospital."

But nurses and doctors voiced concerns that not only was this decision not in the best interest of upper Cape Cod patients, but it will put the lives of infants and expectant mothers at risk.

Among those in opposition to the closure was Betina Smith, a nurse at Falmouth Hospital who argued that forcing expectant mothers on the upper Cape to travel to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis could mean life or death for an expectant mother and her child.

Smith said a couple weeks before the closing announcement, a woman 34 weeks pregnant came into Falmouth Hospital's emergency room in the middle of the night with a prolapsed umbilical cord. Nurses and doctors performed and emergency cesarean section, and the mother delivered a healthy baby.

"If she tried to travel to Cape Cod Hospital, her baby probably would have died," Smith said during Thursday's public hearing.

Dr. Bill Agler, an obstetrician and the chief medical officer for Cape Cod Healthcare, disagreed that the distance between hospitals creates health dangers. In Massachusetts, residents are considered to have "low access" to a hospital if they live more than 50 miles away, but Nadler said Falmouth and Cape Cod hospitals are only 21 miles apart.

"Although an inconvenience, it certainly doesn't create a lack of access problem," Agler said.

But many residents, including Jessica Labert of Falmouth, argued that although Cape Cod Hospital is more than within the 50-mile range, summer traffic can make a drive from Falmouth more than an hour.

"[Traffic] can double or quadruple your time of the ability to get through [to the hospital]," Lambert said. "Short of a helicopter ride, I’m not sure how people would be able to transport themselves during that timeline."

"Every minute counts," added Donna Kelly-Williams, the president of the Massachusetts Nursing Association. "This decision will add dangerous minutes to an expectant mother’s ability to access care when it matters most. This is a dangerous decision that could jeopardize the health and safety of families in your community."

But Lauf said the closing of the maternity and pediatric units doesn't mean Falmouth Hospital can't perform emergency services. He said infants will have access to care through the emergency department, and pediatric emergency and same-day surgeries will still be available. Hospital employees will also continue to take patients to Cape Cod Hospital when necessary, Lauf said.

The Department of Public Health has until June 12 to determine if the closures take away an essential service for upper Cape Cod residents. If the department deems the units necessary, Cape Cod Healthcare officials must submit a plan for ensuring those services are met within 15 days of DPH's decision.