Viewpoint: St. Pat’s elimination of ObGyn services devastating

Jennifer Mayo

To the administration of Saint Patrick Hospital, the Board, and the Providence Health System,

With the closure of the Family Maternity Center on October 10th and the effective loss of full spectrum gynecologic care at Saint Patrick Hospital, I find myself reflecting on the state of hospital administration and corporate medicine, and why they remain at odds with physician leaders. Though the financial crisis affecting the business of medicine is known to all, the manner in which Providence cut maternity care from the only level II trauma center in our region belied a casual disregard for those who serve their mission.

What is it that makes healthcare administrators so different from medical care providers? A good physician is honest, empathetic, and forthright. An exceptional physician can own their discomfort and acknowledge their mistakes. They apologize—not always because the outcome was within their control— but because they understand that how we communicate with one another holds great value. Our connections to each other have consequence, and the relationship between care providers and those who control our health care system is deeply fractured.

The administration of Providence prefers to keep their business decisions impersonal, in order to protect themselves from the human impact they impart. The use of corporate jargon shields them from expressing emotion and evades clear communication. They remain resolute in avoiding acknowledgment of the effect this decision had on their staff, their patients, and our community. Their mistake may not be that they chose to end maternity care, but it is certainly their lack of empathy in delivering that news and in imparting these massive cuts.

I ask that the corporate and business leaders of our institutions remember that they are called to help facilitate the very service that occurs in their hospitals. Picture your staff, working through fatigue in the middle of the dark night, quietly caring for members of our community during the most vulnerable moments of their lives. I implore you not to act as if this means nothing—when you turn away with the goal to forget, it does not make you strong or stoic. It makes you apathetic and cowardly.

Saint Patrick Hospital has long provided not just adequate service, but uncommonly excellent healthcare. It's what made working at Saint Pat's uniquely rewarding. When we hold each other accountable to deliver extraordinary care, the work sustains us, despite the demanding hours and the emotional toll. Your hospital is devastated to lose ObGyn services, and the care we provided across service lines, cultivated over a decade, as a team.

It is clear that to corporate medicine, we are each just a cog to be removed and replaced with any credentialed provider. The care we provided at Saint Pat's was honed over years of service through late nights and management of emergencies side by side. That care was dependent on relational trust that can only be earned over time. That’s how we saved lives.

I urge you to seek relationships with those who serve your mission. Rapport and respect are necessary for the survival of exceptional care at Providence and Saint Patrick Hospital.

Jennifer B. Mayo, MD ObGyn physician serving Saint Patrick Hospital 2010-2025