Maternity decision delayed

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34151, 12 May 1976, Page 22

Maternity decision delayed

The final decision on 1 closing Calvary Hospital’s maternity wing had been delayed while doctors I tried to come up with a way to save it, the Provincial Superior of the i Little Company of Mary (Sister Philippine), said yesterday. After a meeting of obstetricians, general practitioners, and the hospital’s advisory' board on Monday night, Sister Philippine said the doctors, who were “frantically trying to think of ways of saving the wing,” advanced several suggestions which had now to be investigated. The hospital has long been in severe financial trouble, largely because of wages and inflation, and survived last year only after a $lOO,OOO grant from the Government. An investigation revealed maternity was the department most draining the hospital’s resources. “We are weary of fighting for financial existence when we want only to care for the sick,” Sister Philippine said. The hospital authorities had reluctantly decided the wing should be closed because the losses endangered the entire hospital. “This decision still stands. However, after last night’s meeting it was decided the final decision will be briefly delayed pending a firm proposal from the doctors as to how the department can continue,” she said. Sister Philippine said there was no question of any other department of the hospital being closed. A final announcement on the maternity wing would be made in a few weeks. In the meantime, however, maternity bookings were quite secure until the end of November.