By Mary O’KEEFE

USC Verdugo Hills Hospital will close its labor and delivery services including its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The last day will be Nov. 29.

According to a statement by USC-VHH, “This decision is based on a careful and thorough examination of the hospital’s services and the shifting demographics and needs of the community it serves.”

The median age for La Crescenta-Montrose is 42.1 years, and for La Cañada Flintridge it is 45.1 years, according to several reports including Data USA.

The Labor and Delivery Unit of USC-VHH has been a hospital center of service for a long time and for decades has received positive feedback.

The state-of-the-art NICU at USC-VHH opened in March 2018. It is composed of six private rooms that are equipped with technology including a camera that is mounted on top of the incubators. This allowed family members to view their new addition; for example, grandparents who may not be in the area could download an app and monitor the progress of their grandchild.

The NICU, at the time, had a staff of 12 nurses and five respiratory therapists in addition to occupational therapists. However, the NICU, Perinatal Unit and Labor and Delivery Unit will all be closed. This will include the closure of the total 18-bed unit and will affect about 70 staff.

When asked if staff will be transferred to another USC Keck medical facility or simply laid off, USC-VHH referred to its statement: “The hospital is working to support affected staff in their next steps.”

Rebecca Fletcher has been an educator at USC-VHH since 1990 and is sad, and a bit surprised, that this decision was made.

“I was [am] the unit educator for new mothers,” she said. “For years I facilitated the new mother’s forum.”

Numerous classes were offered by USC-VHH on a variety of subjects and moms from other hospitals attended, Fletcher said. She said felt her role in the unit was small compared to the nurses and staff who work in labor and delivery, and said she will miss them.

Losing this aspect of woman’s health in the local area is going to be felt by many. Although demographics in the area reflect an aging population, there are patients who come from outside the Crescenta Valley and La Cañada Flintridge.

Fletcher added she has seen moms from all over including from Santa Clarita.

“They come here because of our reputation,” she said.

For her, the focus of providing education for new moms, and dads, is key to what USC-VHH has been doing. She hopes the education portion of hospital service continues.

“It’s nice to keep women’s [support] in the neighborhood,” she said, “so you don’t have to make a long drive to keep maternity [services].”

She does hope that, taking demographics into consideration, the hospital not only keeps but also offers classes for older kids like those who are of middle school age.

One popular class Fletcher has taught for years is a babysitting class.

“The babysitting class is filled for months,” she said.

She understands that USC-VHH may not have a large number of births at times and hospitals do need to make difficult decisions. But the small, intimate feeling of the unit is why people liked it here, she said.

She appreciates the years that USC-VHH was able to offer the education classes for new parents.

“I have run into mommies years [after the class] who now have [grown] children,” she said of the community feel of the unit and the classes. “I hope they don’t continue to lose family education in lieu of the [closure] and the hospital will continue to support families.”

Her last day and her last class will be on Nov. 20. Fletcher is sad to see the program go and will miss the nurses she has known for decades.

The hospital administration is also working with patients and their families so they can receive “high-quality obstetric care close to home.”

“We are honored to have played an integral role in the lives of so many growing families for more than 50 years and look forward to continuing to provide the Glendale, La Cañada Flintridge and Foothills communities with world-class medical care,” according to USC-VHH.