Epworth Geelong to close maternity services in 2023

STAFF shortages have forced Epworth Geelong to stop providing maternity services in the short term and potentially forever at the private hospital in Waurn Ponds from next year.

Epworth Healthcare made the announcement earlier today (Monday, November 28), and said the group had entered consultation with all affected staff, unions and doctors.

Epworth HealthCare group chief executive Dr Lachlan Henderson said the proposal to close the maternity service followed continued workforce shortages across the maternity healthcare team.

“Workforce shortages in nursing and midwifery are being experienced globally, and throughout Australia and our repeated, extensive efforts to recruit midwifery staff at the Epworth Geelong Maternity unit has met with limited success.

“A high quality service requires a minimum number of skilled and competent midwifery, nursing, allied health and specialist medical practitioners, across a 24-hour, seven day per week period”.

“We have made the difficult announcement of our proposed closure.

“After consultation is complete, if a decision is made to close, the closure of our Epworth Geelong maternity service is anticipated to occur on March 1, 2023.

“Everyone who works in our Epworth Geelong Maternity unit has shown an amazing dedication to this service. We are incredibly proud of our midwives, specialists and maternity support staff who have provided exceptional care to families in the Geelong region since the service commenced in 2017.

“We are working with our obstetricians to contact all booked maternity patients.”

He said Epworth Geelong had established a dedicated maternity concierge service, at which booked patients could phone 03 9426 0622 (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm) to discuss their individual circumstances.

Epworth Geelong has paused new maternity  bookings during the consultation, but other clinical services at the hospital are not affected.

“Epworth Geelong has seen a significant expansion of other services in recent times, including the opening of an additional theatre, expansion of our ICU, cancer, cardiac and neurosurgery services,” Dr Henderson said.

“We have also increased the Emergency Department’s hours from 16 hours to 24 hours a day.”

The maternity service at Epworth Freemasons in East Melbourne continues to operate with no change.