LEWISTON, Maine — Central Maine Medical Center is temporarily suspending pediatric and trauma admissions because of staffing shortages, the hospital said in a statement Tuesday.
On Monday, the hospital posted a statement on its website that heart attack patients would not be admitted, but on Tuesday the hospital revised that statement.
Also on Monday, CMMC said pediatric and trauma patients that arrive at the emergency department can be screened, stabilized, and evaluated at the hospital but will be taken to another facility to be admitted.
CMMC said the trauma suspension would be reevaluated every 24 hours while the pediatric suspension is in effect until further notice.
Read CMMC's full statement below:
Acute nursing staffing shortages in key areas require Central Maine Medical Center to temporarily suspend admissions of pediatric and trauma patients at this time. The highest priority of CMMC is providing safe care for our communities. In order to meet that commitment, CMMC is curtailing these services in response to unprecedented healthcare workforce shortages.
This temporary suspension of trauma inpatient admissions will be re-evaluated at least every 24 hours. The temporary suspension of pediatric inpatient admissions will remain in effect until further notice.
You may have seen that yesterday we also temporarily suspended STEMI (heart attack) admissions. At today’s capacity review this suspension was lifted. We expect that the situation will remain fluid as we manage staffing to demand.
When pediatric patients or patients with trauma arrive at the CMMC Emergency Department, they will be screened, evaluated appropriately, stabilized and, if needed, transferred to another facility that can serve their needs.
CMMC has notified area hospitals and is coordinating with emergency medical services and LifeFlight of Maine officials to ensure the timely transfer of patients.
On Oct. 25, CMMC will close its neonatal intensive care unit, changing its status from a Level 2 nursery for babies under 35 weeks of gestation to a Level 1 nursery for babies above 35 weeks of gestation. This action is being taken due to resignations of key staff that exacerbated an already fragile healthcare workforce.
Like many healthcare organizations across the country and the state, Central Maine Medical Center will continue to monitor the constantly evolving workforce situation and make adjustments in order to provide safe and compassionate care to the communities in which we serve.