PeaceHealth announces closure date for Eugene emergency room

PeaceHealth has announced the official closure date for its emergency department at its Eugene hospital.

The company sent out a notice Tuesday that the emergency department at Sacred Heart Medical Center, University District will cease operations at 7 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 1.

The notice comes after an announcement in August that PeaceHealth would be shutting down the Eugene location's hospital services, which caused concerns for community members, local officials and health care workers. This is part of PeaceHealth's "comprehensive process to close the underutilized" University District hospital.

After Dec. 1, there will be no hospital in Eugene. Eugene-Springfield residents can go to PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend in Springfield, McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center in Springfield or PeaceHealth Cottage Grove Community Medical Center for emergency medical services.

“We’re grateful for the many productive conversations over the past few months, both internally and within the community,” James McGovern, interim chief executive and chief medical officer of the PeaceHealth Oregon network, said in a press release. “We are proud to maintain inpatient behavioral health and inpatient rehabilitation services without interruption and offer extended-hours urgent care services in a more centralized Eugene location.”

McGovern said this in reference to PeaceHealth's recent decision to close the West Eugene Urgent Care, relocating urgent care services to the PeaceHealth Medical Group, located across the street from the University District hospital.

PeaceHealth also confirmed it will maintain its behavioral health services, which are greatly needed as it is the only medical psychiatric unit in the region.

Along with local officials and community members, Gov. Tina Kotek was among those pushing to keep the behavioral health services going. Approved by the Oregon Health Authority, the governor issued a waiver to continue inpatient mental health care to patients that allowed:

• Continued operation of behavioral health beds at Sacred Heart University District Hospital under a modified hospital license.

• Continued operation of 27 acute rehabilitation beds at Sacred Heart University District Hospital under a modified license.

PeaceHealth's next steps include renovation and process improvements at RiverBend to reduce wait times and enhance patient experience.

Statements from local officials and unions

Following the announcement by PeaceHealth of the closure date for its Eugene emergency room, Mayor Lucy Vinis told The Register-Guard the city had hoped for more time to respond to the closure and the changes it will bring but this was what they had expected.

"Our first priority is to make sure that we have enough transport vehicles, to just make sure that we can deliver people out to RiverBend and get back in time to address other needs in the community," Vinis said. "There are mid-term and longer-term discussions going on around our emergency response system and how we can be a little more resilient and other options that we can explore or develop that would strengthen our system in the long term."

Vinis reminded community members to be mindful of their needs if they call for an ambulance, communicating if the ambulance might not be required immediately, as well as being conscious of circumstances that allow people to transport themselves to a hospital.

"We will rely on our dispatch system to help guide people through what is the appropriate response," Vinis said. "But if they need to get to the hospital, Eugene Springfield Fire will get them to the hospital, not to worry."

Local unions also weighed in, sharing their disappointment in PeaceHealth moving forward with the closure.

Kevin Mealy, spokesperson for the Oregon Nurses Association, said while there were several wins through the efforts of demonstrating and petitioning with the approval to maintain the behavioral health and inpatient rehabilitation services as well as moving the urgent care to a more centralized location, this was a loss.

"PeaceHealth is abandoning Oregon's second largest city and leaving its residents without a hospital," Mealy said. "We know it's not safe. We know it's not right."

Mealy said there are both immediate and long-term implications. In the short-term, there will be fewer places to access care, fewer services, fewer beds and longer waits. In the long-term, he said the possibility of a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake is a big future risk. With all hospital services located across the bridge, which could be compromised in the case of a large earthquake, those services could be inaccessible to Eugene residents.

"Even keeping a smaller version of University District open, but offering many of the same services would be a much wider, wiser course of action," Mealy said.

Mealy added pressure to keep the hospital open will not end with this announcement, as the coalition of Save Eugene's Hospital will continue to meet. He said the speed of PeaceHealth's closure of the hospital left no chance for community members and officials to find solutions or make a clean transition.

Across the state, there have been situations where a medical group has needed to close down portions of its services, to be met with support from the community or nonprofits that were able to help keep those services running. In Coos Bay, Bay Area Hospital was able to keep its behavioral health unit open last year thanks to funding from a local Coordinated Care Organization.

Mealy also pointed to PeaceHealth's claim that its University District hospital was being underutilized.

According to PeaceHealth's 2022-2025 Community Health Needs Assessment, which was published in April 2022, the University District hospital was "highly utilized," which contrasts with PeaceHealth's claims a year-and-a-half later that it is underutilized.

"University District serves the community with nonsurgical inpatient hospital care, inpatient rehabilitation, much-needed behavioral health services and a highly utilized level 3 emergency department," the report stated.

PeaceHealth stated the vast majority of University District hospital caregivers will have positions at other PeaceHealth locations, including at RiverBend and Cottage Grove Community Medical Center. It said this change will result in improved staffing at both hospitals and their emergency departments.

Mealy confirmed the majority of their union's nurses have been offered similar positions within PeaceHealth.

However, Mealy said he's not sure how many will end up accepting another position at PeaceHealth. He has heard from nurses that feel let down by PeaceHealth after this closure and have decided to seek health care jobs outside of the company.

Alan Dubinsky, communications director of the Service Employees International Union Local 49, said the union has received notice of 46 potential layoffs for its members at the University District location.

"SEIU Local 49 is disappointed that PeaceHealth is implementing their plan to close the University District, impacting frontline healthcare workers, patients and the Eugene community," Dubinsky stated. "Moving forward we will be working with our members facing layoffs to determine next steps and review options available."

Miranda Cyr reports on education for The Register-Guard. You can contact her at mcyr@registerguard.com or find her on Twitter @mirandabcyr

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: PeaceHealth announces closure date for Eugene emergency room