Little Rock-based Baptist Health on Tuesday (June 2) confirmed that it is cutting another 70 jobs at its Fort Smith hospital. The news comes a little more than a month after the hospital system operator said it would close several clinics and services, resulting in the loss of 150 jobs, including 10 physicians.
The hospital system has announced hospital 260 staff, nursing and physician cuts in three announcements since late March.
Sources told Talk Business & Politics that the 70 job cuts would be within several hospital areas, including clinic admin, pharmacy, radiology, case coordination, facilities maintenance, and sterile processing.
“Like many organizations, we regularly evaluate our operations to ensure we are running efficiently and responsibly,” Brandi Stewart, interim president, Baptist Health Western Region, noted in a statement. “Due to a sustained decrease in service volumes and the duplication of certain roles, we have made the difficult decision to eliminate approximately 70 positions in the Fort Smith area.
“Decisions that impact our people are never taken lightly. We are fully committed to supporting our affected colleagues through this transition with severance and job placement assistance. Please note that these adjustments will not impact our services or the quality of care we provide to our community.”
Baptist Health said with its April announcement that it has lost $127 million since acquiring the Fort Smith hospital in 2018.
Baptist Health also announced in late March plans to close the labor and delivery operation and end obstetric services at its Fort Smith hospital. The closure was estimated to result in the loss of around 40 jobs, the hospital said.
Concerns about the future of Baptist Health in Fort Smith began in March. Doug Weeks, Baptist Health executive vice president, chief strategy and innovation officer, spoke on March 20 to members of a Fort Smith civic club and several physicians about the hospital’s future. According to those who attended the meeting and meeting minutes, Weeks said the hospital could halt hospital operations in its two large towers and use only the newer “Renaissance” building for emergency room and limited surgery center operations.
Baptist officials have asserted that the hospital will not fully close, saying they plan to spend $20 million at the Fort Smith location “over the next few years,” and the investment is part of a “transition of its Fort Smith campus.”
BAPTIST, FORT SMITH HISTORY
Baptist Health acquired in July 2018 what was then Sparks Health System from Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems (CHS). The deal closed in the fourth quarter of 2018, and a transaction amount was not disclosed.
Prior to 2018, Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates acquired Sparks in a $138-million deal that closed Nov. 30, 2009. It was that transaction that resulted in funding for the ACHE, the parent organization of the Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine and the College of Health Sciences.
The Degen Foundation, a Fort Smith-based philanthropy, was created with some of the revenue from the sale of Sparks to HMA, providing initial ACHE funding to build a $32.4 million facility in east Fort Smith in the Chaffee Crossing area. The ACHE has since expanded to include other provider therapy programs and a research institute.
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