With West Suburban closed, where will expectant mothers in Austin deliver?
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Expectant mothers in Austin, Chicago, face challenges after West Suburban Medical Center closed its labor and delivery services, with the nearest alternatives being hospitals in Berwyn or Chicago. The closure exacerbates existing disparities in maternal healthcare, particularly affecting Black women.
The closure of West Suburban Medical Center's labor and delivery services has left expectant mothers in Austin, Chicago, without a nearby hospital to deliver. The nearest hospitals with labor and delivery services are MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital, Mount Sinai Hospital, and Saint Anthony Hospital in Chicago. Previously, doctors from PCC Community Wellness Center delivered about 50 babies a month at West Suburban. After the closure, they began delivering at St. Mary's and MacNeal. The increased distance to hospitals can be detrimental, especially for complicated births or sudden deliveries. Austin residents, predominantly Black, already face higher maternal mortality rates and infant death rates. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the average maternal death rate for Black women in the US is over three times higher than for white women. Austin has the second-highest rate of severe maternal morbidity hospitalizations in Chicago, highlighting the need for accessible prenatal care and labor services.
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