MDI Hospital’s unionized nurses have condemned the decision to stop delivering babies there.
The Bar Harbor hospital’s administration announced Thursday morning that its birthing unit will close effective July 1.
MDI Hospital said Thursday morning that there have just been nine births there so far this year. In 2024, the hospital delivered 32 babies, compared with about 100 a decade ago.
The hospital said that it has become increasingly difficult to maintain obstetric care with such low volumes of births, as well as declining federal and state reimbursements.
But the hospital’s unionized nurses blasted the decision as “devastating” and “short-sighted,” accusing administrators of not seeking input from nurses and caregivers.
“MDIH administrators’ decision rips critical healthcare services from rural working families in our community,” Janice Horton, who is a 32-year veteran of the hospital’s OB department, said in a Thursday statement. “Nurses are deeply concerned about the permanent, damaging effects this decision will have on families MDIH is supposed to serve in Bar Harbor and surrounding towns and outer islands.”
Cokie Giles, a nurse and president of the Maine State Nurses Association, said Thursday that the statewide nurses union stands with the OB staff at MDI Hospital and condemned the closure in “the strongest possible terms.
“This is an abject failure by the hospital’s administration, particularly CEO Chrissi Maguire. For the good of this community and of our state, MDIH’s OB department must remain open,” Giles said.
Maguire, who is also MDI Hospital’s president, on Thursday called the decision to close the birthing unit “painful” but “necessary” to ensure the hospital’s sustainability.
“This is deeply personal for me — I gave birth to both of my children here,” Maguire said in a statement. “We know how much this service has meant to our community. But we must adapt to ensure the continued strength of our hospital and the care we provide.”
While it is closing the birthing unit, MDI Hospital will double the size of its emergency department, including a room equipped for emergency births; rotate staff through partner hospitals to keep them trained for emergency deliveries; coordinating with nearby facilities to ensure smooth transfers for deliveries; and launch a new program to guide expectant mothers through prenatal, delivery and postpartum care.
“We are committed to doing all we can to support mothers and families,” Maguire said Thursday. “With new supportive maternal health services, specialized emergency providers, and a unit ready for urgent deliveries, this difficult transition will not deter us from our mission to deliver compassionate, community-focused care.”
It’s the latest Maine hospital to close its birthing unit amid declining birth rates. Births have fallen by half in Maine since 1960, and from 12,589 in 2015 to 11,621 last year.
Over the past decade, eight hospitals have eliminated their birthing units or announced forthcoming closures. That includes three last year alone, including at MaineHealth Waldo General Hospital in Belfast.
Fewer than 20 will remain after this summer.
MDI Hospital will hold a town hall meeting about the closure from 4-5 p.m. April 3 at Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor. The public can register to attend in person or via Zoom at jesuplibrary.org/events/hospitaltownhall.
