FALMOUTH – Cape Cod Healthcare President and CEO Michael Lauf responded to a change.org petition with over 2,000 signatures asking for the birth center to return to Falmouth Hospital.
The maternity and inpatient pediatric units were closed and absorbed into Cape Cod Hospital last month.
“I think it’s great that people care so much about the community and the services that are within it. It’s also our responsibility to make sure we can serve a community in a crisis, and we have to do that,” said Lauf.
“Secondly, we have to make sure that any service we provide, we have the appropriate coverage from physicians and expertise within our hospitals. And third, it’s important for us to make sure that Falmouth Hospital is strong. This was not done in any way, shape, or form in an off the cuff way. This was well thought out,” said Lauf.
A falling birthrate over the past decade was cited as the reason to close the center and allocate its resources to COVID-19 preparation.
“In this time of crisis, rather than deflect our attention away from what’s most important, which is making sure we have a plan to care for COVID-19 patients as well as making sure we have a plan to care for our wonderful families and those that are delivering babies on the Cape, I want to be doing my job. So we’re going to continue to focus,” said Lauf.
“We understand this an emotional time and this is a great service, but we also have a responsibility to the community, to make sure that we are prepared, whether it be for a new baby coming into this world, or for COVID-19 patients that will need life-saving measures.”
Lauf also said that Cape Cod Healthcare also had a responsibility to the Upper Cape and the Falmouth community to make sure that they have the right coverage, and that they will ensure in the long term that Falmouth Hospital remains strong as well.
“All of that goes into making the right decision,” said Lauf.
“I get the petition, I understand how people feel. I sympathize with them, but this decision needed to be made and I made it.”
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