St John of God Health Care will close maternity services at its Bunbury Hospital next month, blaming the move on a lack of staff.
It comes only months after SJOG closed down its Mount Lawley maternity services, leaving Subiaco and Murdoch as its only Perth units.
The service has experienced a chronic shortage of midwives and a lack of obstetricians, GP-obstetricians and paediatricians locally, and an overall decline in demand for private maternity services at the hospital.
St John of God Bunbury Hospital chief executive Jeffrey Williams said a comprehensive review of the service was undertaken last year and discussions with local obstetricians, GP obstetricians, and midwives have been ongoing.
“Whilst we have implemented a number of changes over the last 12 months to ensure we continue to maintain safe and high-quality care maternity services, unfortunately, through the review we have been unable to identify any sustainable models of care that would enable the service to continue for the foreseeable future,” he said.
“Our priority is to now support the safe transition of maternity care for women who were planning to birth at our hospital, and we are working closely with our colleagues at Bunbury Regional Hospital to support any increased demand for their services.
“We have consulted Bunbury Regional Hospital on the scheduled closure, and we will work closely with them to support throughout the transition period.”
Information will be provided to women who were booked to have their babies at the hospital, including transitioning their care to public hospitals, with the option to be treated as private patients and cared for by their chosen obstetrician or transferred to one of St John’s private hospitals in Perth.
Where possible, SJOG Bunbury Hospital doctors, midwives and nurses will be offered re-deployment within the hospital or at Perth-based maternity services.
During this period, St John of God Bunbury Hospital will maintain its existing arrangements to manage some of the current challenges, including bypass arrangements with Bunbury Regional Hospital for expectant women who go into spontaneous labour overnight.
St John of God Health Care Chief Operating Officer, Mr Ben Edwards, said the organisation remained committed to the southwest region.
“We undertook a review of the service in 2023 and this identified several challenges in providing a sustainable service,” Mr Edwards said.
“Whilst we have implemented several changes over the last 12 months to ensure we continue to maintain safe and high-quality care maternity services, unfortunately, through the review, we have been unable to identify any sustainable models of care that would enable the service to continue for the foreseeable future.”