Close to Home: Why we’re closing Petaluma birthing center

Providence (previously as St. Joseph Health) has been a part of Sonoma County for many decades and has operated Petaluma Valley Hospital for more than 25 years. During that time, we have served this community with the goals of providing high-quality care and supporting the overall health of residents.

Our goals continue to be the same, but a number of factors that affect health care have created significant challenges. One of the biggest challenges is the ongoing national staffing shortage for clinical professionals, including physicians and nurses, which makes it difficult at times to fully staff departments and shifts. According to Healthline, for example, the shortage of registered nurses in the U.S. is expected to continue through 2030, and by then it is estimated that we will need more than 1 million new RNs to meet health care demands.

At Providence, the safety of patients is our highest priority, and complete and reliable clinician staffing is imperative to maintaining safety. That is what led us to declare our intent to close the Petaluma Valley Hospital Family Birthing Center. When we received a notice of termination of obstetric anesthesia coverage for the Family Birthing Center (effective Jan. 31), we knew that securing alternative coverage would be difficult given the national shortage of clinical professionals, including physicians and certified registered nurse anesthetists.

We since have been able to secure temporary obstetric anesthesia coverage, which will allow us to maintain obstetric services for a short period at the Family Birthing Center. Without permanent coverage, however, we will not be able to continue to operate safely in the coming years. As such, we believe the right thing to do is to close the Family Birthing Center and combine obstetrics services at Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.

We notified the Petaluma Health Care District of our intent, as required in the asset purchase agreement. The agreement specifies the terms of sale for when Providence purchased Petaluma Valley Hospital from the district, effective Jan. 1, 2021. In 2020, Providence negotiated in good faith with the district, including expressing our intention of keeping the Family Birthing Center open through 2025.

We did not anticipate the depth and severity of workforce challenges that are resulting in significant safety concerns. We will continue to follow the process outlined in the asset purchase agreement.

We realize this is hard to hear for many in our community, and we understand. Petaluma Valley Hospital’s Family Birthing Center provides high-quality care, and we appreciate the many stories shared by members of our community who have had positive birth experiences at Petaluma Valley Hospital. Nonetheless, the risk of remaining open is too high. The bottom line is that it is not safe to keep the Family Birthing Center open if it is not appropriately staffed, resourced and ready to deliver babies 24/7. This situation could also lead to the need to temporarily divert patients, which also may lead to unsafe situations and confusion for expecting patients.

We do not make decisions like this lightly. We have thoroughly reviewed all available options and have issued a request for proposals to regional and national medical groups for obstetric anesthesia coverage, none of which have expressed interest to date. Despite our continued efforts, the only option is to close the Family Birthing Center due to safety concerns.

The health and safety of everyone in the communities we serve has been and always will be our guiding light at Providence. We are committed to doing what is in the best interest of those who count on us for care, and we will remain steadfast in our dedication to the health and safety of our patients in south Sonoma County, now and into the future.

Laureen Driscoll is regional chief executive for Providence in Northern California. Dr. Rajesh Ranadive is chief medical officer of Petaluma Valley Hospital.

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