Good Samaritan Hospital is committed to providing high-quality care to our patients and to the communities we serve, as well as providing a safe working environment for our colleagues. Despite the labor union's misleading statements, we remain appropriately staffed, complying with all county and state ratios, providing top-notch care to all our patients, including our smallest and most fragile ones.
The fact of the matter is that the South Bay, similar to most of the country, has experienced an overall decline in births over the past few years. In 2020 alone, Santa Clara county experienced a 6% decline in births from 2019, consistent with the state average. Simply put, our community is having fewer babies and that impacts the amount of staff necessary to provide care for our labor and delivery patients. Like other organizations, we flex our staffing to the specialties and services our community needs most at any given time.
Our experienced senior nurse leaders have made appropriate adjustments to our staffing models and we are proud that during a national nursing shortage in the middle of a global pandemic, we have protected our colleagues’ jobs, without any layoffs.
Patient and colleague safety has been paramount to all of us at Good Samaritan Hospital, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. We have complied with all state and CDC regulations and guidelines for PPE, testing and other COVID-19 protocols.
In doing so, Good Samaritan Hospital continues to advance our mission -- above all else we are committed to the care and improvement of human life. Make no mistake, no one cares for our littlest patients, their families and colleagues as much as we do.
-- Antonio Castelan, Communications Manager, HCA Healthcare Far West Division