Hospital officials say obstetrics review is about safety and staffing, not imminent closure

Denise Needham, president of Waldo County General Hospital and Penn Bay Medical Center, told the Belfast City Council on Aug. 6 that the hospital is conducting a review of its obstetrics program because of staffing shortages and low birth volumes, not because of immediate financial distress.

"The program here is under stress for two primary reasons. Number 1 is staffing challenges, and number 2 is a low volume of births," Needham said, describing an OB work group that meets weekly to assess options. She said the hospital is not at risk of closing and emphasized the review aims to preserve safe, sustainable care locally.

Why it matters: Councilors and many residents have expressed anxiety about the future of labor-and-delivery services in Waldo County, which affect how and where expectant parents receive care. Needham cited data showing the hospital's projected total for the year ending Sept. 30 is 112 births, down 19.4% since 2019, and said national benchmarks show very low-volume centers have elevated maternal morbidity risks.

Needham outlined the drivers and next steps. She said low birth volumes partly reflect an aging local population and that maintaining clinical skills is difficult when staff do not regularly attend births. "The OB work group meets weekly," she said, and the hospital aims "to wrap up our discovery and discussion period by the end of August in order to make a recommendation to the MaineHealth board in early September." Needham said any change would come only after local board endorsement and community involvement.

Councilors and members of the public pressed for clearer communication about services. Councilor Neil Harkness called communication "the big problem here," saying residents hear conflicting reports online and from staff. Harkness and others urged the hospital to clarify which services remain in place after some website links routed users to partner providers. Resident John Krueger, representing Friends of Harriet Hartley Conservation Area, asked the city for a line-item disclosure of legal spending tied to unrelated development controversies; Andy Stevenson, also a conservation-group member, asked whether the city would join the group's petition to the Maine Public Utilities Commission concerning a water-district sale.

Needham addressed specific service concerns: the hospital has expanded some services (ENT, cardiology, walk-in care and new pediatrics) and recently added community health workers and an inter-facility transport program. She acknowledged gaps where staffing made intermittent services difficult (for example, echocardiograms when an echo sonographer was not available) and said the hospital is pursuing shared staffing models across the health system to maintain capability.

The hospital will host a community forum the next evening at Belfast High School (5:00–6:30 p.m.) to gather input and record comments. Needham said staff will compile questions and post an FAQ and that every comment will be read and logged. The council said it will stay informed as the local board and MaineHealth consider the recommendation.

The council did not take action at the meeting; officials described the presentation and public outreach as part of the discovery process and said the timeline anticipates a local recommendation to the MaineHealth board in early September.