Ascension to Close, Consolidate Waukesha Hospital, Close Other SE Wisconsin Services » Urban Milwaukee

Ascension Columbia St. in Milwaukee. Mary’s Hospital. Coburn Dukehart / Wisconsin Time

Ascension Wisconsin On Thursday, he announced plans to close a small hospital in Waukesha and consolidate and close maternity services, mental health units and cardiac catheterization laboratories in southeastern Wisconsin.

The announcement comes as other hospital systems across the state We’ve had similar cuts and closures.

The Saint Louis-based hospital system will close its “micro hospital” that opened in Waukesha in early 2021.

Ascension Wisconsin provides all inpatient behavioral health services for the southeastern part of the state at St. Louis in Milwaukee. announced plans to centralize St. Francis Hospital; That means it will eventually close its inpatient behavioral health units at All Saints Hospital and Columbia St. in Racine. St. Mary’s Hospital-Ozaukee.

“Birth services,” or labor and delivery services, are located on Columbia St. in Brookfield, a spokeswoman for the system said. He said he would be transferred from St. Mary’s-Ozaukee and Elmbrook Hospital. St.Joseph Hospital Milwaukee and Columbia St. on the St. Mary’s-Milwaukee campus.

“The changes are designed to respond to the needs of the community and ensure that we serve patients in locations best equipped to support them for years to come,” Ascension Wisconsin spokesperson Mo Moorman wrote in an email.

The hospital system also includes St. Louis in Milwaukee. Joseph hospital and St. The cardiac catheterization laboratories at St. Francis Hospital on Columbia St. Mary’s-Milwaukee Campus, Elmbrook Hospital in Brookfield and Franklin Hospital in Franklin.

Kim LitwackThe transition was likely made due to several factors, said the dean of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s College of Health Professions and Sciences.

“Hospitals tend to close their units due to high operating costs, financial difficulties they face, staffing shortages or changing care needs,” Litwack said.

Movement, hospital system victim of a cyber attack earlier this year This affected patient records. This led to a loss of $1.1 billion, According to a report by Yahoo Finance.

“Personnel costs are increasing,” Litwack said. “Staffing shortages are affecting, and what hospitals are trying to do is figure out how to do more with less.”

Hospitals are shifting services to match services with high-need patients, Litwack said.

“But that takes people away from their communities and that makes it difficult, so it becomes harder to access,” Litwack said.

Connie Smithpresident Wisconsin Federation of Nurses and Health ProfessionalsSt. The closure of the cardiac catheterization laboratory at St. Francis Hospital will affect four employees, he said. He said the laboratory will be closed until December 14.

“If we close that cath lab, we will have to send patients and people to other facilities, and we worry about how long it will take to get them into care,” Smith said.

Smith said Ascension St. Closed labor and delivery units at St. Francis Hospital and two years ago.

“So it’s more job loss for us, but it’s also a loss for our community,” he said.

As the micro hospital closes, St. A 10 million dollar investment is coming to St. Francis Hospital

Ascension says it will close microhospital In Waukesha, also managed by Emerus Holdings, through Jan. 13, 2025.

According to the statement, the facility primarily provides emergency services and “low-level care services.”

“Both parties are working with the facility’s partners to identify opportunities to transition to open positions at facilities in the other region,” the statement said. “This transition will not impact services provided at other Emerus-Ascension Wisconsin joint venture facilities in Menomonee Falls and Greenfield.”

Inside another expressionHospital system, St. announced that it will expand the inpatient behavioral health center at St. Francis Hospital with a $10 million investment. The goal is to have up to 60 inpatient beds at this facility, according to the statement.

In the statement, St. Services at St. Francis Hospital will range “from outpatient care to partial hospitalization to full residential care for adolescents and adults,” it said. The hospital will continue to provide emergency services, inpatient and outpatient services.

“Addiction treatment services offering same-day visits and integrated collaborative care with recovery coaches will also be available,” the statement added.

Rise to close small hospital, consolidate, shut down other services in southeast Wisconsin originally aired by Wisconsin Public Radio.