Tell City hospital to stop delivering babies
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Perry County Memorial Hospital in Tell City said Monday it will no longer provide obstetric services or deliveries at the end of the year. Hospital officials said the move is the result of declining delivery rates and an evaluation of current and future health care needs.
The hospital said it delivered only 70 babies last year and is on pace to deliver only 38 babies in 2023.
“As a designated critical access hospital, we are limited to 25 beds,” CEO Jared Stimpson said in a news release. “Currently, four of our beds are set aside for obstetric services, while we’re averaging less than one delivery per week.”
Stimpson said having those four beds available for other health care needs will better meet the community’s need for local care and reduce transfers to other facilities.
“We are also working to add more surgical procedures, implement comprehensive pain management services, and reopen our ICU and cardiac rehab services,” he said.
The hospital said pregnant patients will still be able to receive prenatal obstetric care from local physicians, and noted there are four hospitals providing obstetric and deliveries within an hour of Tell City.
The hospital will cease providing the services on Jan. 1. However, the hospital’s emergency department will continue to handle emergency deliveries and stabilize patients before transferring them to other facilities.