CHULA VISTA, Calif. — In a matter of months, Scripps Health plans to close its maternity ward at Scripps Mercy Chula Vista and move their labor and delivery operations to their hospital in Hillcrest.
Scripps Health said this upcoming consolidation will help meet the rising number of emergency room patients they are currently seeing in Chula Vista. Some patient advocates, though, have some concerns about this move.
"I think it is always concerning, whenever we are talking about closing labor and delivery units, because what we are doing is we are essentially closing access," said San Diego Assembly Member Dr. Akilah Weber, who is also a practicing OB/GYN. She added that this is one of a growing number of closures of maternity wards across California.
"Unfortunately where you're seeing up and down the state these labor and delivery units closing, there are communities that really need them there the most," Dr. Weber told CBS 8.
She said that Scripps Health reached out to her earlier about this planned consolidation.
"One of the first questions I asked Scripps when they talked to me was, Where are these patients going to go?"
Under this plan, those patients would be referred to Scripps Mercy San Diego in Hillcrest.
A spokesman for Scripps Health said that currently, only about half the beds in the OB unit in Chula Vista are in use, while in-patient surgical beds are occupied at or beyond capacity, adding in a written statement that "Repurposing the OB space to meet the increasing demands of patients coming in through the emergency room and for other inpatient needs will significantly decrease long wait times for these patients now and will make possible expansion of critically needed services such as cardiac care."
"I don't think it's a good idea," said South Bay resident Bernice Barreto, who pointed out that many obstetrics patents who use Scripps Mercy Chula Vista rely on public transit to get there.
"Because for people around the South Bay area, this is closer, more convenient for them to come here, close to where they live at," she told CBS 8.
Only one labor and delivery unit will now remain in San Diego County's second largest city, at Sharp Chula Vista.
"We're going to be watching," Dr. Weber said. "Can Sharp really absorb some of these patients that would normally go to Scripps Chula Vista and really see what that impact would be."
In the meantime, Dr. Weber is proposing new legislation that would require hospitals to give advance notice to the state before closing these units, and also provide a reason.
Currently, state law requires 90 days notice. This new bill would significantly increase that, and also require an impact assessment on the community.
'We need to make sure that as a state that we are helping keeping these very, very critical units open," she added.
According to Scripps Health, emergency OB care will still be available at Scripps Mercy Chula Vista, even after the consolidation.
For more information on Dr. Akilah Weber's proposed legislation, click here.
Here is Scripps Health's full statement:
"As a community health care provider, our goal at Scripps Health is to deliver high-quality health care services that best meet the needs of the communities we serve. Today at Scripps Mercy Hospital Chula Vista, we need more beds for adults and seniors who are coming to us for emergency care, surgeries, cardiac care, and other services, and we expect that need to continue. Scripps Mercy Chula Vista has seen a sustained increase in emergency room visits and demand for beds for adult medical surgical patients. To provide much-needed capacity and services for these patients, Scripps Health is moving forward with a proposal by Scripps Mercy Hospital Chula Vista to move its obstetrics care to the Scripps Mercy Hospital San Diego campus. Inpatient medical-surgical beds at Scripps Mercy Chula Vista are currently occupied at or beyond full licensed capacity, while on average only about half of the beds in the OB unit are in use. Repurposing the OB space to meet the increasing demands of patients coming in through the emergency room and for other inpatient needs will significantly decrease long wait times for these patients now and will make possible expansion of critically needed services such as cardiac care. At the same time, consolidating the OB services as well as the Rady Children's NICU now at Chula Vista with those at Scripps Mercy Hospital San Diego will ensure continued excellent care for new mothers and their babies."
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