Dartmouth Health Announces Staff Reductions: 124 Layoffs, Elimination Of 303 Open Positions

By InDepth NH

LEBANON, NH ­— Dartmouth Health (DH) notified 124 employees today that their positions have been eliminated in addition to the cancellation of 303 open positions from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinics Southern Region.

Changes include consolidating and restructuring executive roles and administrative leadership, as well as eliminating select programs. Dartmouth Health does not expect these employment actions to negatively impact patients, as they have been carefully planned with patient needs as a top consideration.

Patient revenues continue to be outpaced by escalating operating expenses, which have grown by 12%. Labor, supply and drug costs continue to rise, while insurance companies are paying less and taking longer to pay. While DH has taken many steps to address operations, the current pace of expenses is unsustainable and further adjustments were necessary.

Programs impacted were:

• Tele-ICU and Tele-ED, two services whose costs, at the current scale, without external support, were unsustainable. Leadership is working closely with affected facilities, of which more than half are Dartmouth Health members, to ensure alternative patient care plans are in place. This decision presents an opportunity to review and further understand how to continue to integrate clinically in these areas across Dartmouth Health.
• The New England Alliance for Health (NEAH), established in 2009 to support collaboration among community hospitals, behavioral health centers, and home health agencies in Northern New England, has evolved due to the growth of the health system. As some member organizations have joined Dartmouth Health or other systems, the need for a separate alliance has diminished.
• Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt and Green Belt employee training program. It’s become clear that outside vendors are able to deliver this employee training more cost-effectively.

“The employees affected by these changes have made meaningful contributions to Dartmouth Health, our patients and our communities,” said Joanne M. Conroy, MD, CEO and president of Dartmouth Health. “Some have spent many years serving this organization. The decision to eliminate a position or program does not diminish the value of the work these colleagues have done and the contributions they have made.”

In April, DH created an Acceleration to Transformation Office (ATO) to quickly identify ways to improve financial health while protecting patient care through a thorough review of every major area of operations. This work included reviewing capital spending, contracts, billing, supplies, programs, workflows, and other operating costs. Changes already implemented include:

• Reduction of travel and conference participation.
• Reduced reliance on Traveler positions.
• Strategic continuation of capital spending and construction work to expand patient capacity to meet demand.

“In an effort to be fully transparent, I shared with our employees in July that the ATO would be reviewing staffing models and today’s eliminations are a result of that informed work,” continued Conroy. “Eliminating positions is among the most difficult decisions any organization can make, given the impact on our colleagues and their families. At times, however, difficult choices are necessary to ensure Dartmouth Health is sustainable and well-positioned for the future, while continuing to fulfill our mission and serve those who depend on us.”

Dartmouth Health is committed to implementing the best-practice financial resiliency program moving forward and to ongoing review of position and program structures to ensure sustainability and successful management of operations.

Impacted employees will be offered resources, transition support and opportunities to pursue other roles within the health system.

Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and largest private employer, serves patients across New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,300 providers in nearly every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. Its network of hospitals, outpatient centers, clinics and home care facilities, spans a broad geographical area. Year after year, DHMC is named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is consistently recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, northern New England’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers and one of less than than 60 total nationally; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital, the Golisano Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Health and more than 20 locations around the region; eight member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont, Hampstead, and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Dartmouth Health Home Care; Dartmouth Health Connected Care Center for Telehealth, serving patients as far away as Texas; and more than 30 primary and multi-specialty clinics across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its partnership with Dartmouth College, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and the White River Junction VA Medical Center, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials with international impact. Dartmouth Health and its more than 16,000 employees are committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in the communities it serves and to providing every patient with exceptional, state-of-the-art, personalized care. Learn more at dartmouth-health.org.

This story was originally published by InDepth NH.